We Have a Perfect HATE Connection
by Ash003
Summary: "I don't know when my hate for you turned into love. But I do know we've always had a connection. We have a perfect HATE connection" He smiled. She was now his entire world. - A hate/love connection? A tale of two people from different worlds coming together through all odds. Hate turns into love in a flash and before you know it, love conquers all odds. #Cailey.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hey guys! I got this idea in my head for quite a while. I've read some really interesting fanfics on here but I couldn't help but notice, they all some how revolve around Cody & Bailey being students and getting instantly attracted to eachother or being friends first. Well this one is different. The characters are quite OOC so I apologise for that. I do hope you'll like this. Please read and review. (:

Note:

1. Zack and Cody are not identical twins in my story. They're fraternal twins and don't look alike.

2. They're both 27.

3. Bailey is much younger than them and she's just 21.

4. London is still London. ;)

Enjoy!

Chapter 1

The bright light of the morning's sun spread through the large room. The blonde boy was shaken up from his peaceful slumber. Zack Martin stretched in bed and finched a little as the light stroke his face. It was another day, another boring day in his enormous castle sized house. Another day that he'd have to spend doing nothing since his twin brother was the brainiac and was handling their large Business Empire. The Martin Empire was probably the largest in the country and was known in one of the world's most popular businesses. Zack was not even bothered enough to know about what exactly their companies did. However, his brother Cody Martin was a business Tycoon. Zack was more than just proud of his brother but he had no desire to take part in the family business.

It was Zack, the hit of the parties, the "babe magnet" like he called himself. He wanted to live his own life and not follow in the footsteps of his father and now his brother. If it was in Zack's hands, he'd pick any girl in the world and run as far away from his suffocating world as possible. That was what his mother wanted, she wanted him to settle down first before he could leave her sight and for that, Zack was willing to marry any girl at all. He felt pressured in the presence of Cody. He was better than him in so many ways and he was tired to be under his shadow.

Despite all of that, Cody was still his best friend. He would always ask for his advice or approval before taking any decision because Zack felt he was much smarter. Cody too adored his brother and Zack was the only person in the world that Cody couldn't possibly say NO to.

Zack smiled to himself and thought..."I can only imagine him yelling at all those people in the office right about at 8:00 in the morning"

"WHY DO I SEE DIRT ON MY MUG? WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS?"

A blonde boy in his mid 20s shouted on top of his lungs. His seething anger could've torn his perfectly fitted designer suit that he was wearing. Although his office had a lot of furniture, his voice was loud enough to be echoed around. The person standing in front of him looked terrified. It was not like it happened so rarely that it surprised anyone, still the temper of Cody Martin was feared by all.

"Sir, I'm extremely sorry for this. Here let me get this mug and get it completely sanitised"

The guy's voice trembled so much that it was hard to understand what he was saying but Cody was used to listening people in the exact voice. He didn't mind that in the least. He didn't know why but it kind of made him happy. However right at that point, his anger was still at the very peak..

"Will sorry make it alright, huh? Do you even realise what could've happened if I really did drink out from this mug? Do you? Or are you too naive to pay attention on its consequences?"

"Its...its...ju..s..t some du...sttt particles, siirrrr..."

He could barely make out the words...and his fear was right as he saw the expressions on his boss's face turned from mad to absolutely furious...

"JUST DUST PARTICLES?" He shouted as he picked up the mug from his desk and went closer to him..."these tiny "particles" could've caused me millions. What if I got sick. It'd take atleast 3 days for me to recover from my allergies. I make $100 a minute, which makes it $6000 an hour and $144,000 a day. So if I was away for 3 days, It would've cause me $432,000. You still think they're JUST dust particles?"

As Cody was doing the math, the worker could only wonder how insane his boss really was. But he had been there for long enough to know never to argue with Cody Martin when he's angry...or not argue at all.

"I am sorry. I'll make sure it never happens again."

It seemed like Cody wanted to say something else but the worker was in luck, there was a knock on the door and the conversation was disturbed with Cody yelling for whoever it was to come in...

"Sir, your mother is on line 1. She was saying you're cell phone is off once again."

Cody made an audible "sigh" as the secretary left after making the announcement..."One of these days I'd really have to get rid of all the land lines" he mumbled with annoyance as he gestured his worker to leave while he went back to his chair and picked up the phone and sighed...

"YES, mom!"

"CODY? How many times do I have to tell you? Please keep your phone on. What's the point of having one anyway?"

"I know, I've been wondering the same thing, mom. Don't worry I'll throw it away"

"You know that's not what I meant, Cody. When will you learn to behave a little? You were not like that before you joined the company. You were this sweet guy who was kind hearted. Now its just work for you. When was the last time you had a date...you..."

"Mom please!" Cutting her off "I don't want this again. At least not here in my office. Wait till i get back home. And mom, I'm happy with this life. I earned it and I love it"

"Cody I know you've worked really hard on this company after your father died. But you need to realise that there's more to life. There's a world outside of your luxurious building of Martin Empire. You're missing out on so much, sweetie. I'm really worried about you"

"You're right, I'm missing out...missing out on my MEETING" Cody quickly picked up his suit jacket from behind and stood up..."I'll talk to you later, mom. Bye! Love you"

And before Carrey Martin could utter any word the line was disconnected and he rushed out of his room to a place that might be his entire world. Cody Martin, a handsome business tycoon and quite a high tempered man. Could anyone really change him?

"I can do it"

A lady in her 30's wearing an elegant office dress watched, as a girl who was not older than 21, stepped in front of her emerging from the crowd. She had dusty blonde hair that touched her shoulders. She had a casual T-shirt on with jeans and a summer hoodie. If the lady had any say in the matter, the girl who so confidently volunteered herself to the task she was giving, had no fashion sense at all. The lady could only hold back her laughter as she pointed out at her...

"You? Really? You think you can help me plan this grant event we're having at the Tipton Hotel? You must be kidding"

"I don't kid, Mrs. Heather. And FYI, I can do a better job at event management than you could ever."

The girl exclaimed bluntly. Wow! Thought Mrs. Heather, not only was this girl hard to look at for her obviously ridicule fashion sense but was hard to talk to as well. She was feisty but really confident and that was the basic thing she needed in her assistant...

"Who are you anyway? I mean, what's your actual job here at the Tipton?"

"I handle the accounts for the restaurant in this hotel. I'm basically a student. I need money for expenses. But you know once I graduate, I won't be working like...like a nobody...I'll be rich and I'll be the..."

"Uhhh...yeah...As much as I'm loving your life's story, I'll pass. I'm really running late. So just tell me quickly if you have any previous experience in event management?"

"Got tons. Back when I was on the farm, I organized my grammy's surprise birthday party many times. I was responsibly for bringing all the candles appropriate to her age, which was an awfully difficult task with each passing year. And you don't wanna know what it took me to invite all my family. Specially my uncle miller. Yeah...it took me hours to get the gum out of my hair that he sneezed at me out of excitement for grammy's birthday...oh and..."

"STOP!" Mrs. Heather cut her off..."you talk too much" she was now having second thoughts about her decision of this girl helping out in the event. She had a feeling of the hotel's ball room being turned into a barn if she was responsible of the decorations. But it was like she said, she had a talent of inviting anyone she wanted. Mrs Heather decided that this girl was her only choice..."Alright! You're hired. I'll pay for every day from tomorrow till the event concludes, and you have to give me three hours of your each day. You decide the time, considering you're full time working here and a student as well"

"Yay! I'm so excited. I can finally get that cell phone I've been wanting to buy." The girl squealed with joy before she noticed stares on her.."Uh...I mean, Thank you for this opportunity, Mrs. Heather. I won't let you down. And I'll be free from 5pm onwards."

"Perfect! I'll see you tomorrow...uh, what was your name again?"

"I'm Bailey Pickett."

Carrey Martin had no idea what she could possibly do to make her boys see life in a different light. Her oldest twin, Zack couldn't care less about anything in life. He was always chasing after girls and didn't take least bit of interest in the company. While her youngest twin, Cody took too much interest in the company. He was so responsible that she was afraid he'd end up lonely. He always kept himself closed off. Carey remembered his last serious girlfriend being at the age of 16 and now he was 27 and yet no girlfriend. He hated the mere thought of a girl in his life. He was so afraid to ever come across a girl that he avoided all sorts of parties, late nights or anything. He also made sure that he didn't have any female employee in his office. Wow! Carrey thought to herself, her boys were passionate. Whether it was for being responsible or for not being at all.

She could only wish for Zack to settle down a little in his life. And for Cody, she wanted him to see there was more to life than his business. All Carrey knew was if both her boys would get serious relationships, they'd learn. Carrey vowed to herself that she'd go to any lengths to make sure her boys changed their ways because she knew they were not happy. She'd do anything for their happiness even if it'd make them upset initially.

Please review. I love you all in advance! ;)

Love,

Ash!

xoxo


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

After a long day, Cody Martin didn't have the energy to even sit through the drive back home. He thought he was insane to still want to stay in his office when he was so drained out. That place was his home. He felt like nothing from the outside world would hurt him if he was within the boundaries of his office. This company meant more to him than he showed and on his part, he did do a pretty good job of showing how important it was to him. To take the Martin Empire on heights of sky was his father's dream and now all Cody cared about was to fulfil that dream.

Yes, along the way of his struggle, he got rude, became one of those hot tempered rich men who couldn't care less of other people. But that was just an act he had put up. He thought having this kind of attitude was must if he had to face the big guns in the world of business or else, he would get crushed like an ant. He was satisfied with his life's choices and didn't regret a single thing. The only problem was that his mom never got off his back. She wanted him to loosen up, date somebody, see the world outside of his office and for once care about other things besides business. But something that his mother didn't know was that he just wasn't interested and was happy with his life just the way it was. And he actually hated girls. He hated them because he thought they were nothing but a distraction to men from doing work and from succeeding. He also knew that love was just a myth and he was sure of one thing, the sun could rise from the west but Cody Martin could never fall in love. He was too smart to let such a stupid thing as love to take over him, too practical to be falling for fake ideas of love. Cody Martin waa not a piece of cake to have. There was nobody in this world who could change him or his ways.

"There you are...come on in, Cody. I made dinner so go and freshen' up and we'll eat together."

Cody was greeted by his smiling mother and an invitation to a dinner made by her. He loved his mom more than anyone. He would go to the ends of earth for her but he knew that even at that time, all she would talk about was how he was wasting his life. He was tired of that conversation. Besides, he was exhausted and only wanted to sleep...

"Thank you, mom. But I've already had dinner. I had an official meeting and I ate there. I'm really tired, mom. I'm going to bed. Good Night"

"Cody wait..."

Cody was about to head up but his mom's voice stopped him. He sighed and turned around to face her and waited as she spoke...

"Why can't we have at least one meal as a family? When was the last time we ate together? You wake up early and leave without having breakfast and usually come home way pass dinner time. You even miss thanks..."

"Mom, please!" Cody hated this...he hated how bad his mother made him feel everytime. Why couldn't she realise he was doing all of that for a reason? "I don't want to get into this AGAIN. Look I've had 3 meetings today and I'm really tired, can we do this whole, "Cody Martin is the worst man on earth" debate any other time?"

Carrey was stunt, she never meant he was a bad person. She only wanted him to learn to keep a balance in his life..."Sweetie, you're the best...and I'm so proud of you...but you know you really need to..."

"Thank you, mom! I know what I need and I'm working exactly for that...I'll talk to you later. Good Night and love you, mom."

And just like that, their conversation was over without Cody hearing another word and walking towards his room. Carrey sighed, she only wished somebody would come along in his life and make him realise there were more important things in the world than making money.

Pickett's ...

Bailey woke up early. It was a long day for her, today was her submission of her report in college, then at the hotel she had to hand in the accounts for the month. And after that she had to stay back for 3 extra hours to help out Mrs, Heather with the up-coming event. She only wished for today to go by smoothly...

She got dressed and left for her college. It was a usual day there and when she got free, she took the subway to the Tipton. Her train stopped at a station that was a block away from the Tipton Hotel. She always walked and this time was no different. However without realising, she started reading the magazine she had in her hand while enjoying little sips of the juice she was having. But this was Bailey Pickett we're talking about, something had to come in the way of her peaceful alone time...she didn't know on what she tripped because before she'd know what happened, she found herself sitting flat out on the ground.

"WHAT THE FEATHERS?"

She exclaimed in annoyance...but right then she noticed she was not the only one annoyed, she looked up and saw a man in a suit standing there, drenched in...she made it out herself was the juice she spilled...she also made out that the person was not too happy about their little accident. If the anger in somebody's eyes could kill, his eyes were down right dangerous at that point...Bailey immediately stood up and brushed the dirt off of her clothes before turning her complete attention to him...

"I...I'm so sorry, sir. I didn't see you there."

"WHY? Are you BLIND, or what?"

The man shouted in anger, this was not going good, Bailey thought...

"What? I'm not blind. I didn't mean literally didn't see you. I mean...yes I did mean it literally but not like that...i mean...I could see you but...oh you know what, never mind...I didn't see you..."

"So you're blind and stupid?"

Stupid was one word that Bailey hated to her guts to be associated to..."HEY! Don't you call me stupid." Bailey glared back...

"Then you decide a synonym and I'll call you that. I mean who the HELL READS WHILE WALKING?"

Bailey thought it was pointless to argue with this man so she just decided to apologise and get the lousy moment be over...

"Look I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...I tripped over..." Bailey looked on the ground to see what caused her to fall but didn't find anything..."Okay...so I don't know what I tripped over but it was something..." She gave out a fake laugh..."So I'm really sorry..."

"Sorry? Why do you people think sorry could make everything alright? Are you going to pay for my suit? Huh? Or are you going to come clean it?"

Bailey laughed..."Hey, you know you sound just like my uncle Earl...okay so one time he was walking down the street when a tractor passed by and got mud all over his wedding suit that he was wearing..." Bailey paused to laugh a little harder..."God, he was like so mad...he shouted the same thing..."Ya'll gonna' pay fo ma suit or wha, eh?" Except your nostrils aren't as big as his...and..."she looked closely at his nose before continuing..."and its also clean...unlike his...eghhh...don't make me say that..."

The man just looked at her...he had a look on his face like what the hell was she talking about?...

"Wait what? Uncle who?" He touched his nose..."my nostrils? Huh?" Then he got angry once again..."are you out of your mind or something? Or do you happen to be a run-away from a mental hospital?"

"HEY! That's rude...I said I'm sorry...why are acting like a total...ass?"

"Oh am I? You've seen nothing yet. You know what? People shouldn't even be allowed to walk on the streets like that..."

"Well not all of us have a car like you do..."and right then Bailey noticed the luxurious car he was standing by and couldn't help but marvel at how beautiful it was..."sweet mama, that's a fancy ride"

The man looked between his car and Bailey before he turned back his attention on her..."Okay you're seriously like the MOST STUPID PERSON I'VE EVER MET"

Any light headedness that Bailey was showing before was now vanished and she was fuming with anger...she shouted back..."AND YOU ARE THE RUDEST GUY I'VE EVER CAME ACROSS IN MY LIFE"

The man in front of her laughed..."After seeing you, I hardly believe you met ANY guy at all"

Bailey now turned red...who the hell did he think he was..."You know what? If I was not worried about going to prison, you'd be dead by now..."

"Not unless I beat you to it."

"HUH!"

They both uttered to each other together before going in their different directions...and for both of them, they never met anyone who they could be so mad at.

Martin's...

Cody Martin felt his phone ringing in his pocket as he entered the building of his office. He sighed, the last thing he wanted at that moment was his mom calling him to repeat the same things...He took the phone out and saw it was Zack calling...He immediately answered the call...

"Yes, Zack?" He asked...

_"Cody, I hope you're not busy, got a sec?"_

"I'm not busy for about 10 more minutes so go ahead, tell me what's up?"

_"Okay...so you know how mom is always telling us to change our ways?"_

"Yeah?"

_"I've decided to finally get a serious girlfriend and settle down."_

"So...you mean you've found someone?"

_"Not exactly. But I'm willing to give it a short."_

"Good for you, Zack. But I'm not exactly in the mood to talk right now...specially about girls...(I hate girls)" he mumbled...

_"But I really need your help, Cody"_

Cody just sighed..."What can I do for you, Zack?"

_"I got to know that you're signing this contract with the Tipton Industries, right?"_

"Yeah...I was just there to talk to Mr. Tipton about it. Why? You never take any part in the business, why do you wanna know?"

_"I'm still not taking any part...you see, Cody...I heard Mr Tipton has a daughter about our age...but I know she's really hard to get a hold of...at least I can't do it...but you can, my dear little brother...you're Cody Martin...you can do anything. I just want you to arrange a little "date" or in your business terms a "meeting" with her."_

"Do you want me to ask Mr Tipton to let his daughter go on a date with my brother? Wow! That's original, Zack"

_"Look, I know how huge our empire is and I know that Mr Tipton would do anything to make sure he earns this contract. Might as well be this, huh?"_

"Fine, Zack I'll think about it...I really have to go right now. Talk to you later."

And with that Cody hung up the phone. He could only sit back and think what exactly Zack wanted. Even though it felt weird to actually ask someone you're doing business with for such a things but Cody could never say no to his brother. And the way he felt about his success was already a bit upsetting to Cody so he decided if that was what Zack wanted, he'd get it.

Pickett's...

After her encounter with possibly the weirdest and most annoying guy, Bailey couldn't wait to call it a day. She had all of her files ready that she needed to turn in...so she rushed to her desk to pick it and then went straight to the hotel's manager, Mr Mosbey's cabin. When she got there, she couldn't find him anywhere...she marched her way to the reception and asked the lady...

"Where's Mr Mosbey?"

"He won't be coming here today. Mr Tipton has assigned him to another task." The girl replied...

"No replacement?"

"Well its just one day. But Mr Tipton himself is handling anything that Mr Mosbey would've if he was here. He's sitting in the restaurant. You can go meet him there. "

"Perfect! Thank you."

Bailey said before turning back to go to the restaurant to find Mr. Tipton and there he was, reading the newspaper. Bailey went up to him and simply said..."Hey Mr Tipton"

"I don't help poor people. Specially beggars."

Bailey was taken a back...what did he mean by that? Did he think she was a beggar? "What? I'm not a beggar."

This time Mr Tipton looked up from his newspaper right at Bailey and observed her briefly before speaking again...

"So you mean you dress this way on purpose? Or wait...is this some kind of a designer costume for a beggar."

"Neither...I mean, the part of dressing like that on purpose is true but...HEY! You can't say all of that to me...oh what the heck, I got these from the $1 store, what else can I expect?"

Mr Tipton was looking at her bluntly with the most surprised expression..."please stop talking."

"Kay. But you need to look into these accounts I prepared. This is the manager's job but since he's not here, you'll have to do it or else I won't get my salary and I'd have to downgrade my wardrobe with clothes from a 50 cent store..."

Mr Tipton took the file from Bailey's hands..."I'll take a look at it and do society a favour by not letting you go any below than a $1 store."

"Aww! Mr Tipton, you thought about the society..." Just then, Bailey realised what he actually meant..."wait! So even by being a little nice you still managed to insult me..."

Mr Tipton gave out an audible sigh..."Again, please stop talking. I don't like people talking."

Mr Tipton said while he was still focused on the file Bailey handed him. She couldn't help but conclude that this was officially the day she was insulted the most. She didn't care because she never took any of it to heart. She just decided to sit but the moment she did, Mr Tipton spoke again...

"I don't like people sitting with me either..."

Bailey immediately stood up and pouted at what he said...she was still waiting for him to get this done so she could leave...but right then Mr Tipton's phone rang and he left Bailey's work in the middle to answer it...She couldn't quite make up what was going on since she was able to hear only one side of the conversation...

_"This deal is really important, Jake."_

_"What? Who asks such a thing?"_

_"My daughter?"_

_"I don't know, Jake. She's..."_

Bailey suddenly felt Mr Tipton's gaze on her and he stopped what he was saying...at first she thought he just meant why was she hearing his conversation but he continued...

_"She's right here...I'll send her tomorrow, Jake. Tell that Martin the deal is on..."_

With that Mr Tipton hung up the phone and gestured towards the seat in front of him..."please sit down"

Bailey obliged..."I thought you didn't like people sitting with you..."

Mr Tipton just smiled..."Only poor people."

Bailey looked at him weirdly..."I'm still poor, Mr Tipton."

"Well yes. But you can sit with me considering you're going to be my pretend daughter."

"What?" was all Bailey could say...she had no idea what he meant...

"Okay now listen up. And please don't interrupt me with your silly questions in the middle. I don't have time..."

Bailey just nodded and Mr Tipton continued..."My secretary just called. He told me that Cody Martin, the head of Martin Empire wanted to see my daughter before we go sign this contract..."

"He asked your daughter out through your secretary? What kind of a fool does that?"

"A fool with tons of power and money. Never mind that...I don't know what he wants with my daughter but all I know is I have to let him meet her or the contract is canceled...because what Cody Martin wants, he gets..."

"Who the hell is Cody Martin anyway?"

Mr Tipton just glared at her and she got the message that she was not supposed to ask questions...and he continued..."London, my daughter is not in the state at the moment and he wants to see her tomorrow...I just can't loose this contract so I want you to be London Tipton and meet him."

"WHAT?" Bailey stood up shocked..."I can't pretend to be your daughter...what if he has already seen her..."

"He hasn't" Mr Tipton said quickly...

"Okay so he hasn't seen her. But still...I can't do that...its actually illegal...What if I get caught? And I just..."

(Cutting her off) "I'll pay you as much as you want."

"What do I have to do, daddy?"

_**A/N: next chapter will be uploaded if I'll get reviews.**_

_**Please review. I request you ): lol**_

_**Love, Ash! **_


	3. Chapter 3

**_A/N: Thank you to all those who read my story and a very special thanks to those who review...means a lot to me. Also, if I'm going wrong anywhere please let me know...this is not a good chapter but I hope you like it._**

**_Act and Reality _**

It was not anything new for Cody to come home tired after a long day of meetings and deals...but today had something extra in charts of his exhaustion. A certain meeting with a certain someone was still stuck in his head and he was constantly having flashbacks. It had been a long time since he met a girl, specially the one who didn't obliged with everything he said and only motioned her head to say "yes, sir". This girl got guts...and it was exactly how much he was hating her, to his guts. Then another highlight of his day was his brother asking him to set him up a date with Mr Tipton's daughter, the man he was doing business with. He had no idea how he survived through the day but now that he was home, there was nothing he wanted more to just sleep.

Cody quietly stepped in the house, it was already past 11 pm so he knew his mom and Zack would be fast asleep by then. But the moment he entered the living room, he found Zack sitting there on the couch. Cody didn't have the energy to get into the conversation that he was suspecting would happen if Zack would notice him. So he marinated it as quiet as possible. He was just about to take a step towards the stairs to go up to his room when he was stopped...

"Cody, you're home! I've been waiting for you, dude."

Cody just sighed. It seemed like his day was still not over...

"Why, Zack? Do you have another one of your brilliant ideas to pull on me?"

"NO! Though it does sound good to prank you at this hour, the look on your face would be priceless."

Zack was looking up, probably thinking how he would be doing that...Cody just stared at him...

"Right! Sorry. That's not what I was waiting for to do when you get back home. I just want to ask you if you talked to that Tipton guy."

"Wilfried Tipton. And yes I did talk to him. The deal is final..."

Cody said that and was about to go once again but Zack stopped him...

"What deal? I didn't ask you about one of your pointless business deals...I asked you if you talked to him about his daughter."

Pointless? Right, his business deals were that. Cody thought and just sighed..."No, Zack...I was not talking about any "pointless" business deal...I mean he said yes to letting his daughter meet you."

"This is awesome!"

Zack exclaimed and for another time Cody thought the conversation was over but Zack spoke up again...

"Wait! I have no idea what she looks like, or what she's like in general...what am I even going to talk to her about?"

Cody still couldn't understand his brother..."Zack, if you didn't know her, never even seen her...why did you want to meet her exactly?"

Zack looked at him with a look that Cody knew was suspicious in his case before he spoke..."No reason" that was all he said before he started to leave...the same Cody that had been eager to end the conversation, suddenly felt more interested or rather obliged to find out what was in his brother's mind...he stopped him by the back...

"Not so fast, Zack. You have to tell me what are you really upto?"

Zack turned around and sighed..."Okay. I'll tell you, but you have to promise me that you won't tell anybody about this...specially mom."

Cody nodded and getting that signal he continued..."Everytime I see you, its like...I don't know, man...its like you have your life all set, all under control...I know you've put yourself closed off and you don't particularly agree with the idea of dates or girls...but still, you have this whole huge empire to speak in your favour if you ever do decide...I don't have anything...I barely graduated High School and you know how bad my grades were...you have a degree..."

"I'm seriously not following you, Zack...where are you going with this?" Cody interrupted...

"I'm coming to my point, just be patient...anyways, I was saying that you have a degree and even if one day mom decides to not give you anything out of this...you'll still be able to survive...but what about me? If I don't get anything from our family's business, you know I'm screwed, man. I'm screwed."

Cody was still not catching up to what he was saying..."And that has to do with you wanting to date London how?"

Now Zack beamed..."Because mom told me that she'd transfer my share in the property to my name if I show some responsibility. And what's a bigger responsibility than a girlfriend? Now before you ask me, I'll tell you why I choosed London...I've heard stories about her, for one i heard she's not so...you know, smart...so she wouldn't ask all the crazy "girlfriend" type questions...and she wouldn't interfere much in my life either...and also the fact that no girl I've ever dated has been with me for me...they were always there for the money...and London is one girl who'll never date me for money since she's already got everything...you know what I mean?"

Cody looked at Zack with a look mixed with confusion and surprise..."Uhhh...I think I'll eventually know what you mean..." He yawned..."well for now, all I'm thinking about is my comfy bed so you have a good night..."

Cody got up and turned away before he stopped once again to say one last thing to Zack..."I forgot, you're meeting her at The Mark for lunch...be there"

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Bailey Pickett felt like she made a mistake when she said yes to Mr Tipton's offer...he was paying her more than she'd make in the next 2 months just to act for a few hours..at that time the deal sounded too good to refuse...but now that she was thinking about it, she was scared...she had no idea what this girl was like...except for the stories she heard from people...according to Mr Tipton, this Martin guy had never seen or met her...she could agree with the meeting part...but the seeing part was one that was making her worried...how could someone who himself is in business could never have seen a single picture of the heiress? It must be all over the internet, she thought...and thoughts were too many to let her sleep...she was also thinking that being the girl that she was, she could never be lucky enough to get someone like that...that jerk she ran into was right...through out her 20 years of life, she had never met any guy in particular...when anyone even talked to her, it never got too far to being in any kind of proper relationship...she sighed...being a nerd was already hard then her being broke didn't leave much room for socialisation either. And for once she was meeting a nice guy who's teeth weren't broken or who wouldn't hug her to pick her pocket...but she was not allowed to tell him who she really was..

Bailey lost in her thoughts didn't realise that it was already time to get up...she quickly got dressed and went to the Tipton Hotel...she was just in luck that she had a day off from College so she'd have some time before she was suppose to have her "meeting" to get ready and be like London Tipton.

As she entered the big gates of the Hotel, she was welcomed by the same familiar lobby...but today was a little different. She never thought she could be so important that the owner of the place she worked at would be there waiting for her...there he was...Bailey was getting a cold feat but she knew she already made a commitment with him...she went to him and greeted as he looked up from his phone...

"Oh hey, Bully. I've been waiting for you..."

"Its Bailey,.."

Mr Tipton just looked at her..."Who's Bailey?"

"I AM!" Bailey exclaimed annoyed.

"Are you sure? Because Bully suits you better..."

Bailey sighed...she was not in the mood to get into an argument over such silly thing...after working with the Tipton for a year, she knew how the rich people think and she was immune to such insults by then. Right at the moment, she had other things on her mind...

"Mr Tipton, can we just skip the whole "insulting me" thing and get to the point?"

Mr Tipton stood up and from underneath the table picked up a package...putting it on the table, he extended it to where Bailey was standing..."Here, that's the dress you'll be wearing today...and there's nothing else you need to do. Just be you and we'll be safe."

"Mr Tipton, I'm not so sure about this...I mean, what if he catches me? Or worse, what if he doesn't and would want to see me again? Where do I end up then?"

And once again, Mr Tipton looked at her like she was crazy..."See you again? Oh please. After one meeting with you, I doubt he'd want to go through that ever again..."

"Well, if you're going to talk to me like that, find yourself a new London..." Bailey smirked.

"Oh alright...now just go and get dressed..."

Mr Tipton was about to leave when Bailey stopped him...there still was one question that kept bugging her...

"Wait, Mr Tipton...I want to ask you something..." He stopped and turned around to face her and gestured her to ask..."I was wondering, your daughter must be famous right? How come this Martin guy has never seen any picture of her?"

"Because there aren't any on the internet"

"Huh?" That was all what Bailey could say and guessing her confusion, he continued...

"Ever heard of identity theft? Well when you're rich, people do that to you...years ago a news broke out that my daughter, London Tipton was staying at a hotel and not only using up all of their services in my name but also causing problems for them...her name was mentioned in the news in quite bad words...when one of my employees told me about it, I immediately contacted London to find out what she was upto...she told me she was peacefully asleep when my call woke her up...I knew then that the girl doing all of that and putting a bad name on the Tiptons was an imposter who looked a lot like London...so after dealing with that situation, I ordered to take all the pictures of London off of the internet and also restricted people from posting any in the future so that this identity theft situation never occurs again..."

"WOW!" Bailey exclaimed in surprise..."And I thought being rich is all fun and games..."

"Oh it is...but you'll never know that."

And with that Mr Tipton left without saying anything else...now all Bailey had was the package he left her...she opened it up and inside was a really beautiful dress...her eyes shone brightly upon seeing it..."at least there's something good happening in all of this mess" she thought...she excitedly took the bag with her to the changing rooms to change...

Bailey gave one final look to herself in the mirror...and if she was being honest, she did look pretty good in that dress..."Hey, I'm London Tipton" she extended her arm to great her own reflection in the mirror...she sighed. She had no idea what she'd do today..."You must be, Cody Martin? Its a pleasure to meet you..." She practiced one more greeting but still wasn't satisfied enough...she kept saying all sorts of things to her own reflection till it was time to finally leave...

As Bailey entered the Hotel they were suppose to meet at, her heart was pounding...she almost felt it'd burst out of her chest...she was shivering...and she didn't even feel her own legs...somehow Bailey managed to go inside and took a seat...it wasn't long enough when she heard a voice and she knew it was time get the act started...

"London Tipton?"

Although it was not her name, since about 24 hours she called herself so many times by it that now she was conditioned to respond on that...she stood up and turned around to face a blonde guy...he was tall...he had a good physique too. She couldn't help but think that he was quite handsome...although she was not getting attracted to him the way she had been expecting...

"Yes, I'm London Tipton..."

She didn't know why but it did feel good to call herself by a name which in such a world sounded honourable and prestigious...the man in front of her already looked impressed...but she knew it was not her but the name she had right at that moment...

"Nice to meet you..." He extended his hand to shake with hers..."I'm Zack Martin"

Bailey just looked at him surprised...now who was this, Zack?

**To Be Continued...**

**A/N: I know...boring chapter, right? I'm new to this writing thing so I don't know much. Please be kind to me (: **

**Read and Review!**

**Love, Ash! **


	4. Chapter 4

**_A/N: Thank you! Thank you so much for all reviews...I LOVE reading them all. You guys made my day (:_**

**_To RockingR22: Zailey is far from my thoughts...I never shipped Zailey and I can never write a Zailey fanfic. However you have to bare with me here. A few more meetings of them are required :p But take it like this, Zack is not actually seeing Bailey but London...so its not Zailey but its Zondon. (: _**

**_Enjoy this chapter...a bit of drama coming up folks! :P_**

Bailey froze in her tacks as soon as she heard the guy standing in front of her...who was Zack? Sure he was a Martin but she was told she'd be seeing Cody Martin, the head of Martin Empires. And now she was face to face with somebody else who she had no clue about. All night she prepared to meet someone she heard about from Mr Tipton...he told her that Cody Martin was rich, serious business man who didn't like to joke around. He told her that everybody who had the chance to meet Cody Martin in person had few very similar things to say about him. For one, Cody didn't like to beat around the bush, he only talked business and would only utter a word when it was required...he didn't see anybody if he thought it was unimportant...he always aimed to profit out of any time he'd give to someone...he had a short temper and he could get angry very easily. Bailey heard all of that from Mr Tipton and prepared herself accordingly but now what? She thought...she had noidea who this person was...she didn't know how he'd react to things she practiced to say to that Cody guy? When she initially heard about him, she was scared to meet him until she got everything settled in her head...but now he wasn't even the one she was meeting...it was someone else...someone who could be even more dangerous than Cody.

Bailey was on the verge of having a panic attack when she suddenly noticed the guy still had his hand out for her to shake. He also had a very confused look on his face, which told Bailey how insane she must be looking. She forced out a smile and shook hands with her finally...

"Nice to meet you too...uh, Zack"

They both sat down on the table Bailey was sitting previously...she still didn't know what she'd talk to him about. She needed some alone time, little time to call Mr Tipton to find out who was this Zack Martin? She was lost in her thoughts that she didn't even realise that what she was planning to ask Mr Tipton in her head was accidentally spoken by her out loud...

"Who is Zack Martin? I thought I was suppose to meet Cody Martin?"

Bailey immediately realised that she had said that out loud when she looked at the reaction of the man...but to her relief, he smiled...he must've took it as a question to him...

"Don't you mean who are you?" He laughed a little before continuing..."But I get your question...I'm Zack Martin, Cody is my younger twin brother...well we're just 10 minutes apart but I like mentioning that..."

He laughed again but soon it faded when he saw the girl was not exactly amused..."right, sorry! I guess you just want to know why am I here? There must've been a confusion, London. Your dad must've told you that Cody Martin wanted to see you because he was the one who called. But I wanted to see you, he just asked your dad about it since he was in contact with him."

Bailey was now getting the whole situation...Cody Martin, this guy's twin like he said was just a middle person in all of this thing. She was trying her best to analyse it all but she was still drawing a blank. And as if the guy could read her mind immediately spoke again...

"I know this is all a bit awkward...seeing a guy your dad asked you to meet then finding out he's not even the one that you were told about. But hey? Don't worry, we'll talk things out, right?"

Bailey just smiled and nodded. However nervous she was feeling, this guy was certainly really sweet and he was making her feel quite comfortable by the minute. She took another deep breath and decided to let things go with the flow. She silently told her brain to forget about all the practice she did and just be herself...except for the name ofcourse, she thought.

"You're right, Zack. We'll talk things out. But first, I just really want to know why you wanted to see me like that?"

Bailey actually didn't have any kind of interest in it. Why did he want to see London so badly was none of her concern, she was only there to have a good time and for the money she was getting. But Mr Tipton specifically asked her to make sure she came back with the answer to that particular question...

"Well, London I honestly don't have an answer to that either. Its just that I heard alot about you and I just wanted to see you. You see Cody, my brother is the one who works and I'm the one who enjoy. That's why I got him to ask Mr Tipton. No specific reason to this really..."

He smiled and Bailey forced a smile too. She seriously had no idea about anything. She was supposedly on a date with someone she had never seen in life before, being a girl she ha yet to meet. Wow! It was still too much for Bailey to swallow...

"Shall we order something?"

Zack asked...and she couldn't help but let out a small chuckle as how perfect the timing was of his question of eating and her thought of swallowing. She nodded and they both busied themselves in ordering their meal.

Rest of the lunch went by smoothly with few bumps along the way when Bailey stammered to his questions. Like when he asked what was her favourite thing to do when she was free...she almost blurted out "study" but remembered Mr Tipton telling her that London barely graduated high school and now all she did was shopping. It was only in her favour that both words stared with an S.

Soon enough there lunch was over and so was the "forced date". As they were saying there goodbyes, Zack Martin had another thing rolled up his sleeve...

"Before we leave, London, can I have your number?"

Bailey started to stammer once again...she didn't have a phone. She was gonna get one with the money she'd get for helping in the event and by what Mr Tipton was giving. But it'd still take her atleast 3 days to get it. What was she suppose to tell him now? She had a bigger question in her head though, she and Mr Tipton had planned for only one meeting and he was so sure that he'd never want to see her again but now he wanted her number? She sighed, ever since she ran into that spoiled rich guy...these richie richs kept coming in her life ruining it more than she thought it was already...

"I'll give you my number after 3 days..."

She blurted out without realising what she was saying...Zack had a very confused look on his face and Bailey got the hint that what she said was not acceptable...

"Uhh...I mean...you know I don't have a phone...uhhh...like right now I don't have it. Its...its broken...yeah, it broke a day ago and I gave it to get it fixed. I'll get it within 3 days..."

Bailey finished and silently high-fived herself in her head..."wow I'm good". She thought. There had been many things she didn't come prepared of but she managed to say something everytime. For the terrible lier that she was, she actually felt proud of herself for pulling an act this brilliantly...

Zack gave her a small smile.."where can I come to pick your number then after 3 days?"

Was he stupid or was Bailey too smart? She thought..."OR, you give me yours and I'll call you when I'll get my phone?"

Zack laughed and nodded..."Right! Silly me, here..." He wrote down his number on a piece of paper and gave it to her..."don't you ditch...or I'll come to find you at the Tipton..." He finished with a smile...

"I won't. See you..." That was all Bailey could say before she walked away. She could 't lie, Zack was a pretty nice guy but he still didn't had that something in him. Besides, a person like Zack would never want to even see her if he knew who she really was. As she exited the Hotel, she looked down at the piece of paper with his number on it...with one go, she ripped it in shreds. Bailey knew she couldn't do this, her deal with Mr Tipton was for one date and she was not planning for another.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

After every document that needed to be signed, Cody Martin found himself getting bored with nothing left to do. His meeting with the board was suppose to start in half an hour and he had no idea how to pass that time...He looked around in his office room and spotted a picture on his desk...the picture had his whole family...his dad, mom, Zack and him. He stared at the picture for long enough before he felt tears building up in his eyes...

"You're the only one, Dad...the only one who knows why am I like that...after what happened that day, do you think I'm wrong if I hate girls?"

Cody's mind got flooded with thoughts...

_"Dad, dad wake up...please! You can't go, Dad...you can't leave us..."_

_Cody was sobbing miserably...he didn't know what to do...he was shouting for help...but there was nobody in sight...when suddenly a car came...he shouted "STOP STOP"...the car passed by and didn't respond to his pleadings...all he could figure out was that there was a girl driving the car...Cody himself was injured due to the accident they got into but not as much as his dad was...he was still sobbing when after a few minutes the same car came back...but it still didn't stop...Cody got angry and threw the nearest object on the car and shouted..._

_"ARE YOU EVEN A HUMAN?"_

_The car suddenly stopped and the girl got out of it...she was wearing a knee length over coat. She had long hair that almost covered her face...it was already dark and Cody couldn't see her face...she came closer to him...she had a very weird voice...almost like she really wasn't a human..._

_"I help people..." She muttered in a deep voice..."but I already have a case to solve...don't get in my way. I forgive you this time for throwing that stone at me. There're no second chances in my book..."_

_The mysterious girl turned around and drove away...Cody sat down again next to his dad...just to find out his pulse was no longer there..."DAD?"_

"I'm sorry, Dad...I couldn't save you..." Cody still had tears in his eyes...he didn't know who to blame but all he knew was that if the girl would've helped that day, his dad would've been there with them...which was exactly why he didn't even like the mention of any girl at all...was there any girl even made for him?

xxxxxxxxx

Bailey had to stay in late at work. Mrs Heather had so much work given to her for the event. It was past 11 and now she had to take the cab home...she couldn't find one right outside so she decided to walk a few blocks...she was in the middle of a deserted street when suddenly two thugs emerged and blocked her way...

"Where do you think you're going, sweet face?" One of the ugly looking guys said...

"Don't you have a little sugar to give to us, huh?" Another one exclaimed in a very disgusting way...she was about to make a run for it when one of them grabbed her by the arm...

"Don't you do that, babe. You're coming with us..."

"HELP!" Bailey was shouting but there was nobody...she closed her eyes and prayed...and as if God was right on spot to her wish, she heard a car stop next to her...she opened her eyes with a bit of relief... But it soon vanished to see the same guy again...the rude rich dude...Although he was coming her way, she doubt he'd help her...besides, these guys looked much tougher than him...

She sighed...what could possibly go wrong now?...

**_To be Continued..._**

**_A/N: Who do you think is the mystery girl? _**

**_Read & Review, my lovely readers! (: I love you all _**

**_Love, Ash! _**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I'm thrilled with the feedback I'm getting. (: I'll try my best to make this story as entertaining as possible. (: I'm open to ideas so feel free to PM me.**

**_Its So Easy To Hate You._**

Cody Martin, the man who had billion dollar empire, was stopped on a deserted street on the sight of a girl being threaten...he normally didn't help out much but he still was a human. He got out of the car and just then he noticed that the frighten looking girl was the same who threw juice at him a day ago. At one point he thought to just leave but he couldn't be that harsh. Besides, what one girl did to him was not in anyway her fault. He approached them and was suddenly puzzled. He had no idea what would he do to get out of this safely and to take the girl as well. For one, the guys were two and second, they were obviously much tougher than him. It was also the fact that he hated violence so he was not the one to get involved in it in anyway. His mind started racing when suddenly he got an idea...

Meanwhile Bailey couldn't quite understand what he was doing...sure he was there which meant he'd help her but how? He was not even moving a muscle. Bailey was almost about to give up on her hopes of him doing something when he shouted...

"YOU! How could you do this to me?"

Bailey looked at him surprised. That was the perfect timing for him to remind her about the juice incident? Bailey thought this guy was even more stupid than she thought he was. She wanted to say something but before she could, he continued...

"You knew right? You knew about this all along and still you...you...I mean you did that to me? How could you be so inhuman?"

Now this guy in front of her was actually crying...Bailey couldn't understand...was he really such a baby? What did she even do? This time one of the two thugs spoke up...

"Look, dude. I don't know what she did to you, but stay out of this right now, kay? Or I'm gonna beat yo face"

The rich guy wiped a tear from his eyes and calmly tapped the guy's shoulder...

"Buddy, I'm not even coming in your way but I just have one thing to say to her then you can take her anywhere you want..."

Bailey couldn't believe it but the thugs actually agreed. The one holding her hand let it go and stood there waiting patiently until the rich dude was finished talking..."Really? Thats how these things work?" Bailey thought...However the rich guy wasn't finished...

"I just got my reports back...you know what they say? I'll show you what they say..."

He ran towards his car and took out a file from his front seat then got back to where Bailey was standing and opened it in front of her face and yelled...

"SEE...look at it yourself...how can you be so cruel?"

Bailey was still very puzzled but looked at the file anyway. She immediately made out that it was just a contract file with a bunch of claws and agreements...she looked at him indifferently and was about to say something when he tightly grabbed her arm and pulled her closer towards him...he was so close to him now that Bailey who was already having a hard time to think went straight out blank...

"You had AIDS and you didn't tell me? You gave me AIDS...damn you."

With one fluid motion he released his grip on her and was now fake crying...

"WHAT?"

Both the thugs shouted in unison...Bailey was now getting his idea...the guys who were supposedly there to assault her would now leave thinking she had AIDS.. Bailey was having a hard time holding back her laughter now...this rich guy was actually not stupid at all...but then she saw him moving towards them to show the file he had in his hand..."I change my mind, he is stupid..."

He opened the file in front of them and cried...

"Look at this, my medical reports...she betrayed me...now I'll die in a matter of days..."

Now he was actually sobbing...the thugs looked closely at the file and Bailey was waiting for them to do something like..."you think we're stupid" thing but all they did was hug the rich guy...

"It'll be okay, man...take care..."

Bailey looked at them surprised...but her surprise was not over yet...both the guys told each other together..."Lets get out of here, bro..." before they made a run for it..

As soon as the thugs were out of sight, the Richie rich turned around and slightly laughed.. Bailey was thinking he'd come there to talk to her but he walked passed by her...She couldn't let him go like that...through this insanely twisted idea, he did help her...

"But how?"

He turned around and looked at her very seriously...all the amusement that they previously were sharing was vanished

"Pardon me?" He asked...

"You showed them your business deal file but they didn't pick up on the fact that it was not a medical report?"

The guy laughed..."There's no way that people looking like them and doing what they were doing could be literate. And if you actually thought that they were? Then you're the one who's illiterate..."

"HEY!" Bailey exclaimed but the guy didn't seem to have cared. He got into his car, started it and turned it around to go. Even though he helped her, he still was the same rude, ego-maniac kind of a guy. He was leaving her like that all alone when just a few minutes ago she was about to get..."never mind" she thought...she had feet and should walk herself...she took the very first step when the guy stopped the car right beside her...pulling down his glass he looked at her...

"Do you want to be home alive or not?"

"Huh?" Bailey asked...

He sighed quite loudly for Bailey to not only hear but to be annoyed by it as well..."You're still as stupid as I left you a day ago...I meant get in the car...I'll drop you on the road..."

Bailey couldn't understand him...at one point he was being considerate but at the same time insulting her? She got in the car because even she didn't want to take the chances of facing the same thing again.

As soon as she sat in his car, she marvelled at how beautiful it was...and the drive? Wow! The only drive she ever experienced was of a cab...or a subway...

"This is possibly the greatest experience of my life...you have an AWESOME car"

Bailey said excitedly...she then looked at him and he was just focused on the road, not even a single muscle moving to turn his frown in to a smile...

"Just so you know, I complimented your car and this is the time you're suppose to say 'thank you'..."

When he still didn't respond, Bailey continued..."Well...Thank you for today...I seriously had my doubts that you'd help me...and I had no idea that you'd save me by giving me 'pretend AIDS'..." She used air quotes for pretend aids and laughed..."So thank you so much for all the help..."

Bailey again waited for a while for him to say something but this guy still didn't budge...didn't even look at her...she was now finding it rude but she decided to let it go considering she owed him a little for his help...

"Hello?" She asked..."I said Thank you...now you're suppose to say 'you're welcome'..."

To Bailey's surprise, the rich dude turned his head slightly towards her..."I would say that but that'd be a lie...you're not welcome..." Then he turned back his head to keep his focus on the road...

Bailey was fighting her inner anger. She was trying her best to not blow up on this guy...she told herself to remain calm and she just smiled...

"Whatever you want, suit yourself." She paused..."well, since we've already met eachother twice in the past two days, we should get know to eachother, right?"

"I don't wanna know you..."

The guy said so quickly as if Bailey had asked for something that was illegal...

"Okay..." Bailey said between the girding of her teeth and her best plastered fake smile..."I'm Bailey Pickett, by the way..."

"Don't care."

Bailey's anger was now on the very peak...she couldn't hold it anymore...she wanted to slap the rudeness out of this Richie rich...

"Hey! That's so rude...I'm trying to be friendly here and all I'm getting is your...well your snobby attitude...are you always like that? Don't you ever give this a rest? Do you EVER smile? Do you know the meaning of..."

"You know what's really rude?" Bailey was cut off by him..."You sitting in my car at almost midnight, after I saved you from a possible assault and here you are saying all of this...this crap about me..."

Bailey just looked at him...he did have a point. He did her a big favour and she was just expecting too much. Why did she want him to be nice and friendly anyway?

"I'm sorry..." Bailey said and waited but once again there was no response..."do I have to tell you everything? Now you're suppose to say 'its okay' you know? To make me feel a little better..."

This time the guy turned around and smiled. Bailey was surprised to see that but soon her surprise was over when he spoke up...

"You know what you're suppose to do right now? Stop talking. Because when someone doesn't reply, they're just trying to give you the hint that they're not interested...do you get it now...what was your name? Yeah, get it, Bailey?"

Bailey suddenly felt angry once again...she thought this guy made it so easy for her to hate him. He was the snobbiest rich person she has ever met...she was about to say something when the guy spoke up again...

"And just because we've met more than once, that doesn't mean we have to be anything more than 'PERSON' to eachother...I still hate you...more than you can even imagine..."

"What?" Bailey was now fuming..."I don't even want to be anything with...you. I've never met anyone who's so...so rude and snobby and..."

"I know what I am.." He said carelessly..."Just do one thing and please stop talking...this drive is already hard for me...don't make it any harder by talking. Its hard enough to just look at your face..."

Bailey Pickett never felt that angry in her life. She shouted now on top of her lungs..."YOU ARE VERY MEAN! What's wrong with my face? Did you give me a ride to just insult me? You don't have any manners. You don't even know how to talk to a girl. MAN! Didn't your father teach you anything?"

Bailey blurted everything out but this time the guy didn't have a careless expression rather very hurt. He suddenly stopped the car and looked at her...

"Out!"

Bailey looked at him surprised..."But?" She asked...

"The road is here...I told you I'd drop you on the main road...you'll easily find a cab here...now leave..."

Bailey looked outside and sure enough they were on the road...she turned back to look at him...he still had the same hurt in his eyes. Bailey thought it could be because of something she said so she decided to apologise...

"I'm sorry if I sai..."

She was cut off by him again..."I don't care. Don't need your sorry...just don't waste anymore of my time, please."

Bailey's sympathies went away. He was so rude that it was hard to be nice to him...

"FINE!" Bailey said and got out...and before she could say anything...he drove off...

"FOR THE RECORD I HATE YOU TOO!" She shouted back as the car drove off...

"What a jerk!" She mumbled. There was a problem with the rich people. She couldn't help but wonder why all of a sudden all these rich snobs came in her life? First Mr Tipton then that Zack Martin and this 'Richie rich' was on top of her list..."my life has gotten a lot more interesting than it was..." Bailey Pickett thought as she called out a cab and made her way to her home.

xxxxxxx

Cody Martin entered his house at past midnight. He didn't have the energy to even walk. The last hour of his day was clearly the cherry on top of his cake. He sighed,..for one, he wished he'd never have to see that girl again. He was just about to go upstairs when Zack came from behind shouting his name...

"Cody Cody Cody Cody Cody...I have to tell you something..."

"STOP!" Cody shouted on his brothers ridicules excitement..."I can't take this anymore..."

"Take what?" Zack asked him confused...

"This excitement...these every day adventures, okay?" Cody paced back and forth..."this is not me, this is not the Cody Martin I know. This is NOT MY LIFE. I used to have this perfectly scheduled out life. I go to work, I come back, I sleep and then it starts over again. What's with all these 'excitements' coming along? First I ran into this girl who threw juice at me...then you wanted to see London Tipton...just like that out of nowhere...then there's mom keep telling me to have some fun...and do you have ANY IDEA from where I'm coming from right now? I ran into this 'juice girl' again and I had to tell these two ugly looking thugs that I had AIDS which I got from HER...can you believe that? Then I had to drive her back to the road. Man, she talks too much. I want rest, Zack..." Cody held on to both sides of Zack's shoulders..."I want my freakin' life back"

Zack just stared at his brother...was he crazy or something? "Ohkaayyy!" He moved Cody's hands from his shoulders and got out of his tight grip..." You're right...you need rest." Zack patted his back..."Go sleep...we'll talk tomorrow..."

With that Zack turned around and walked off. Cody stood there for a few minutes before he too turned around and went to his room and crashed...just few minutes with a girl and his life already seemed on the road of change. Was Bailey Pickett really a key to Cody Martin's happiness?

**To be Continued...**

**A/N: I extended the Cailey scenes because hey? We all love them right? I hope you liked this chapter...(:**

**P.S, you know that mystery girl I mentioned in the last chapter? You might wanna remember her...she's important.**

**Review and make my day, please? (:**

**Love, Ash! **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Since school has started, the updates will be once a week...maybe twice but not sooner than that. I apologise for it and I promise to make each chapter special. This is not a good chapter, I don't even know what I wrote. Haha! But I hope you guys will enjoy it. Your views to my story is very important. (:**

**_Elevator War_**

The next two days went by smoothly for Bailey Pickett. She went to collage, came back to work at the Tipton then went home. Nothing out of ordinary happened for her and she was glad to finally be away from all the drama she faced. There was no rich man to ask her to be his pretend daughter or any crazed rich dude to be on a date with and best of all, there was no snobby rich guy coming her way. She was loving it to be away from all the money peeps, or as she liked to call them "paper people".

However, today was a special day for her. She finally got the money to buy herself a new phone. Not only was it a necessity but she knew that in the present times it was also an accessory. Bailey was born on a farm in kettlecorn Kansas. Her parents never had the kind of money to get her a phone or any kind of luxury. When she grew up and started earning herself, all of her money went in the expenses of her studies. She was a self-made independent girl and she was determined to study so much that one day she'd stand up to the level of all the rich people.

She excitedly made her way to the mobile shop from College. Her excitement was radiating from her eyes and it only shone brighter when she finally got the phone. She was squealing with joy as she continued to explore her newly bought phone. It was not just about a new phone but it was the sense of achievement that she felt was making her so happy. She earned it...from her own money.

Bailey was almost at the gates of the Tipton still busy in her phone, when she was startled by a voice...

"I see you got your phone back, London?"

Bailey looked up as she heard someone calling her London again. As soon as her gaze landed on none other Zack Martin, she began to feel the same nervousness she felt on their first meeting. Bailey was so sure that she was finally done with all the drama but there it was...once again staring at her right in the eyes...

"Uhhh...yeah! I got it back. Just got it..." She said between the uncomfortable stammers...

"Great!" Zack smiled..."so now that you have it, can I get your number?"

"I'll text you..." Bailey quickly responded to avoid the subject.

Zack looked down at the phone in her hands with a questioning look. Bailey made out that he was trying to ask her that why was she not doing it right away? She had no idea what this guy wanted but keeping up with the lies was now becoming really hard for her...

"You know, the slip I had your number on? Well I left it in my other purse so why don't you give me your number again?"

"Sure." Zack smiled as he dictated the number to her once again for Bailey to store it. No matter how badly she lied, he seemed to believe her everytime. She was stuck in this situation. She was sure that she'd never have to see Zack Martin again but now he was there...she sighed. How could she even tell him the truth?

"So, London. If you're free, mind joining me for lunch..." He offered

Before even thinking what she was saying, she quickly responded..."Can't! I'm busy...working."

Zack gave her a confused look..."working? You work?"

It was then that Bailey realized that she was not herself, a poor girl who had to work all day for everything she needed. For this spoiled rich guy, she was another spoiled rich girl who didn't even know the meaning of the word "work"...she raced her creativity in her head to think of something to cover it up...

"By working I mean...ummm...I mean working on...on my dress...yes!" She smiled..."I'm working on a new dress."

"Oh! Thats okay...how about coffee then later?" Zack offered again...he was not about to give up and he clearly was not getting the hint..

"Can't do! Won't be done by then..."

"Then how about dinner?" He asked once again to which Bailey had to refuse at any cost. There was no way she'd go on a dinner date with him. That'd imply them to be formally dating...

"Can't! Coffee would be fine, I guess. I'll make time."

"That's great" Zack exclaimed cheerfully..."so I'll pick you up at 5? Be ready..."

Bailey nodded and smiled back in response. Zack waved her good bye and in a matter of few minutes he was out of sight. Bailey just stood there not knowing what to do...she couldn't tell him the truth now. If he found out that she was not London, there were chances that he'd tell his brother Cody Martin about it and there were bigger chances of him cancelling the contract with the Tipton and there was an absolute chance of Mr Tipton firing her for making him lose his really important contract. She just sighed. She went back inside and prepared herself for another "pretend date" being a "pretend person". It wasn't like she had any other option. She was stuck in this situation badly and had no idea how to get out of it.

It was 10 minutes to 5:00pm. Bailey was dressed and was waiting for Zack. He got there on time. He held out a hand for her to which she hesitated a little before but then took it as they walked to the nearest coffee shop. Their little time together was fun and this time around, it was a lot easier for Bailey. They mostly talked about things that didn't require her to be acting as London. Soon it was time to say goodbye and Zack tried to be the perfect gentleman by dropping her at the Topton Hotel where he thought, she lived. Bailey went inside in front of him and waited a while till he was gone before she could proceed towards going to her actual home.

Zack Martin was a nice guy and Bailey knew that she wasn't lucky enough to get someone like him. Rich, sweet, caring and handsome. He had all the qualities any girl would want in a guy but still she never felt that sparkle. The one she always dreamed of. She never felt butterflies, those that she had read about in tons of romance novels. But then again she didn't know if they were all true. She never fell in love before. Maybe it was all a big myth. Bailey was willing to give Zack a chance but not as London, as herself.

As she was in bed that night, she received a text message from Zack that said he'd like to see her again tomorrow. Bailey decided it right then that it was time to tell him the truth. If he liked her as her and not because she was London Tipton, he'd still want her after knowing the truth. She decided to write everything in a letter and to have someone give it to him tomorrow when he'd reach the Tipton, if he'd still come to see her, it'd mean he had no problems. She immediately wrote down everything and put it in her bag before she went to sleep.

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Cody Martin was more than happy to have his life back on track. It was just him and his business. He was so excited today to be signing the deal he had been working for in negotiations for a month. A company merger with one of the Tipton's Hotels. They were both big names in the business world and a merger was not only beneficial for them but for other businesses as well. Cody put on his best designer suit, sprayed the most expensive perfume, had the best looking shoes as he left the house for the Tipton Hotel where their meeting was arranged.

Cody Martin entered the luxurious lobby of the hotel. He was quite before time so he decided to roam around a little. He couldn't help but compliment the decor and ambiance of the Tipton Hotel in his mind. Right then his phone rang. It was Mr Tipton asking if he had reached. He told him that he'd be right up in the Conference room.

He walked towards the elevators and got in and immediately the doors were closed. He was still busy on the phone and didn't quite pay attention to another presence until he heard the voice...

"Hey! I wanted to get out on the ground flour..."

Cody Martin turned around on a familiar voice and was face to face with the same juice-aids-girl once again. But now he knew her name, it was Bailey Pickett. That was odd for Cody to remember her name when he couldn't even do so of his own employees...

He looked at her as she was just as surprised as he was. He smirked..."Well, when in an elevator, you're supposed to get in and out when the doors open...what were you thinking when they did?"

Cody waited for a while for her to respond but she didn't even move, instead she kept looking out in space. Her face clearly showed she was far away from the outside world and lost somewhere deep in thoughts. Cody half laughed on her still confused face...

"Hey, lady?" He snapped his fingers in front of her and she was startled..."maybe this is the reason why you didn't realize the elevator had stopped, right?"

"Thats none of your business..." She shot back. Even though Cody was in such a good mood that he was not insulting her or anything. In fact he was trying his best to be polite..."Move aside, I have to get out of here..."

She pushed Cody away and went to press the ground button on the panel. Cody immediately took a hold of her hand and pulled her away to the place she was standing before...

"Not so fast...its your fault you missed your flour, now you'll have to wait till this thing drops me on the top flour then you can go..."

Bailey gave him a dead glare..."you're no boss of me...this is going down, not up..."

She passed Cody once again to push the button but Cody was faster and was also closer to the panel...before she could hit the ground button, he hit all the buttons and laughed...

"You wanted to go so badly? Now the elevator will stop on all the 55 flours before it can go back down.."

"Ughhhh...I'm going to kill you..." She came closer to him while all Cody could do was laugh. He had no idea why but he was really enjoying making her this angry...he grabbed her both hands as she was trying to grab his neck with them and he pushed her against the wall...

"Killing me is not a piece of cake, Bailey Pumpkin..." He smirked bringing his face closer to her...

Bailey was looking straight in his eyes...Cody had no idea what was going on but he found himself suddenly leaning in. To his surprise, she was not pushing him away. They both were lost in eachother's embrace...right then the elevator's doors opened and Bailey quickly pushed him off of her. It was the 10th flour...the lady outside saw them and stepped away...

"I disturbed something, I guess. I'll take another elevator...carry on..."

Bailey took this as an opportunity and thought of going out but Cody grabbed her again..."WHAT ARE YOU DOING? Let me go, you idiot..." She shouted...

Meanwhile Cody was laughing...as the doors closed again, he let her go...she turned around furious..."WHY DID YOU DO THAT?"

"Because its making you angry, and I'm loving it..." He whispered it in her ear...Bailey angrily pushed him back...

"You have no idea how important it is for me to see my manager right away. Why are you causing me delays? I could get fired...you wouldn't know that...you're the boss of everyone..."

"Really?" Cody asked and then smirked..."I didn't know that...I was just doing it to make you angry. But now that you mentioned your job..." He moved towards the panel and pretended to hit the ground button..."it gives me another reason to keep you from going..." And with that he started pressing the rest of the buttons...

Bailey couldn't take it anymore...she moved ahead and started hitting it with him..."you want to play it like that huh, Richie Rich?" Her hand was about to hit the "HOLD" button..."No, Bailey don't press that..." Cody shouted but it was too late...the elevator came to a sudden halt which knocked both of them on the ground...the lights started to flicker and then the elevator was completely stopped...

"Richie Rich? What is happening..."

Bailey asked who was now really tensed...Cody pushed her off of him and stood up to see what had happened...he tried hitting the HOLD button again for it to start but nothing happened...he checked his phone but there were no bars...and suddenly the same Cody Martin who was happy and enjoying all of it a few minutes ago, got angry as he turned around to face Bailey...

"Look what you did. How could you be so STUPID?"

Bailey looked at him stunned..,"I am stupid? And what you were doing was completely a brilliant idea, right? You started this..."

"YOU PRESSED THE HOLD BUTTON..." Cody shouted again..."Now I'm stuck here with you...and the signals are out too so I cannot even contact anyone. You know what? You're bad luck...everytime I see you, something goes wrong...EVERY DAMN TIME."

Now Bailey was not only angry but hurt..."Oh yeah? And what are you to me then? I can possibly get fired and here I am...forced to look at you and hear your stupid, snobby, rude comments while this whole thing was your fault initially..."

"It was your fault that you didn't leave whe..."

Bailey cut him off..."Don't! Just DON'T TALK TO ME! You're the worst person...I cannot even call you a person...you're not human...I HATE YOU SO MUCH..."

Bailey went in the corner and sat down...she took out a note pad from her bag and began to write something on it...

"Well I hate you too..." Cody said but she didn't respond...she was not paying attention to him now.

Cody went to the other corner and sat down...he was now feeling bad but he had no idea what to do. He had never apologised to anyone before and he didn't even know how to do it. He thought if he'd talk about something else, maybe her mood would get enlighten a bit...

"So...how long do you think we're going to be stuck here?"

She didn't respond, didn't turn around. Great, now she was giving him the silent treatment. Cody had no idea why it mattered to him but it did. He moved closer to where she was sitting and peeked in to see what she was writing...

"Are you writing about how much you hate me?" Cody said giving out a small laugh...

"NO!" She quickly tore the paper she was writing on from her note pad, folded it neatly and put it in her bag..."this is a very important official letter that I need to give to someone..."

"Oh, I see!" Cody laughed..."even if you were writing you hate me, you can. Because for that we'll be on the same page...literally."

It made Bailey laugh regardless of how angry she was on him...Cody took it as his chance to tell her that he was feeling bad for what he did...

"I shouldn't have said what I did earlier. I just have a really huge business deal to sign and I was getting late for it. But it wasn't your fault and I shouldn't have done what I did..."

Bailey felt sincerity in his voice. She smiled..."yes, you shouldn't have. But then again, after meeting you three times, I know you can never change, Mr Richie Rich..."

"Hey why do you call me Richie Rich?" He asked

"Because I don't know your name and since your rich, I call you Richie Rich..."

"Creative." Cody smiled..."By the way I'm..."

But before he could finish, the elevator took another jerk and it started. They both stood up and Bailey excitedly hugged Cody...

"Yayyy! It started, it started..."

Cody was now confused...he didn't know but he was feeling things he never felt before. However before he could even give his brain some time to understand those feelings, she pulled back...now the rest of the time they stood there quietly. Finally Cody's flour came and he walked out but before the doors could close, he turned around and looked at Bailey...

"Hey Bailey!"

"Yeah?" She asked.

Cody just gave a little laugh..."I hope you get fired..."

On that Bailey gave a fake pout..."And I hope you screw up your business deal..."

And right then, they were separated by the doors of the elevator closing between them... They both laughed on how silly they acted.

How unexpected could love be? It can hit you like a strike of lightning when you least expect it. And you fall for someone you once hated. Was it possible for these two?

**A/N: Its hard writing Zailey. But the Cailey scene wrote itself. I previously had a different idea but this one's better I think? You tell me. (:**

**Read & Review, pretty please? Haha! **

**Love, Ash!**


	7. Chapter 7

_**The Mix Ups**_

As soon as Bailey Pickett was done with the madness of the Elevator with Mr. Richie Rich, she had other things on her plate that needed to be taken care of. First she had to say something to Mr Mosbey so she went straight to his office. After she was done, she left to go do her job...she was nearly in the lobby when she spotted Zack Martin walking in through the big revolving doors of the Tipton. She immediately hid herself in the hallways at a place where she could see the lobby but she was out of sight to anybody there. She saw as Zack Martin took a seat on one the couches.

Bailey looked around to see if there was anybody she could handover the letter to give to Zack...she was in luck because a girl right then appeared from the Elevators...when she reached the hallways, Bailey stopped her...

"Hey listen, can you do me a favour?"

The girl laughed and held out a hand..."I don't do favours" She exclaimed and started to walk away but Bailey stopped her by the arm...

"Ewww! Don't touch me." The girl stated disgustingly. Bailey observed the girl. She was about her age or maybe she was older. Bailey couldn't tell because she was wearing very fine cloths, her face had a very decent and adequate amount of makeup and her hair was done perfectly. If it was anything that was a problem with that girl, it was her snobby attitude. But Bailey was used to it. She knew it was kind of a problem with all rich people. However right then, Bailey didn't have a choice but to somehow force this girl into giving Zack that letter...

"Look, just do this for me and I'll do whatever you'll say?"

Bailey looked at her as the expressions on the girl's face slightly changed and turned into something that was either an evil grin or a smirk...

"Anything?" She asked. Now Bailey was sure it was something evil but she just sighed and nodded in agreement.

"Let me insult you on anything I want...oh wait? In your case, its everything..." She said and laughed. Bailey had no issues with that.

"Go ahead, tell me what's wrong in me..."

"Like I said, EVERYTHING." She exclaimed cheerfully..."you should totally get a decent hair cut. Your hair looks like a goat has either eaten 'em or puked on 'em. Oh and your cloths? Ewww! What are you even wearing?" She finished wrinkling her nose and taking a step back...

"This happens to be the best outfit I have..." Bailey mumbled annoyed.

"Wow! If this is the best one, I'd hate to see the worst one" The rich girl mumbled back but clearly their mumbling was loud enough to be heard. Bailey was now getting really annoyed...

"Are you done?" She asked...

"Yes! Oh wait..." She held out a finger..."you should really get rid of..." Bailey cut her off..."Are you gonna do this or not?"

"FINE!" The rich girl replied..."what do you want? She asked and Bailey quickly explained to her that all she wanted was for her to take the letter and give it to the blonde boy sitting in the lobby. She quickly dug it out of her purse and gave it to her. She took it and went to him.

Meanwhile Zack Martin was still in the lobby waiting for London to come down. He thought he shouldn't send her another text because that might imply him of being too pushy. He actually really liked London and he just didn't want to mess things up. He had been with girls that only dated him for money, for fancy food and expensive gifts. But London Tipton was the only one who had all of it herself and was with Zack for him. Although he was not the emotional type, he was just getting tired of being used. While Zack was battling in his head whether or not to text London, a girl came up to him. Anything that he was thinking previously was now forgotten. This girl looked asian but was extremely beautiful. She had black silky hair that reached just a little lower than her shoulders. She was wearing a very nicely fitted aqua coloured dress that reached her knees. The light amount of makeup that she was wearing was complimenting her beauty. She had beautiful dark brown eyes. Zack never looked at any girl like that before, his mind went black at the sight of her and he didn't know why or what he was staring at. This would've continued if the girl hadn't spoken up...

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Zack was brought out of his little daze by her voice. But he still couldn't utter a single word. The girl stumped her foot and made an audible ugh sound..."are you going to say anything? Zack couldn't. He just didn't know what was he feeling, but it was something that he liked. The girl clearly annoyed by him placed the letter on the table in front him..."this is for you, a hideously dressed girl with poor posture and ugly hair gave me this to hand over to you. Goodbye!" She turned around and walked away. Zack wanted to stop her, he at least wanted to know her name but before he could even manage to say anything, she was gone. It was like a sudden rush of the wind. He sighed, it was the first time that he had been the one to go speechless.

Zack tried to shake off the thought of that girl. He reminded himself that he was dating London Tipton. She was a really sweet girl and he couldn't let some unknown girl who he had no idea about, come in the way. He turned his attention on the paper placed on the table. He picked it up and opened it. He wondered who was it from as he began to read...

_"What do you think of yourself, Mr Richie Rich? You think you can just come and say whatever you feel like to me? Why? Because you're rich? Well I'll have you know, your money is as worthless to me as you are yourself..." _

"What?" Zack stopped reading as he thought to himself..."who would send me a letter like that?" The letter was not finished so he continued...

_"One day I'll be as rich as you are and then I'll show you, I'll show all of you, snobby, ego maniacs, good for nothing, slimy rich people. You think you're so great? You think I'm..." _

The letter ended at this point. It was an incomplete letter. Whoever wrote it either ran out of ink or was just too lazy to finish the thought. There wasn't even any name mentioned in the end for Zack to know the sender. He sat there thinking about it for a while before he just shrugged it off. Zack did date many girls and he thought it was from one of his ex girlfriends bashing him in anger. However he was still in thoughts of the Asian girl. Zack couldn't put his finger on it but there was something very special about the girl that had gotten Zack Martin, the player to be so occupied by her thoughts. He knew that at that time it wasn't a wise idea to be seeing London. And he needed Cody's advice about the whole situation. He took his phone out and called Cody. He told him that he'd see him in his office after some time once he'd be done with the meeting. Hearing that, Zack got up and left to go to Cody's office.

Meanwhile, Bailey was observing everything. Her heart broke down when she saw Zack calling someone then leaving. Not only had she lost a really nice guy but by telling him the truth she had also put her job on stake. She was sure that the person Zack called was his brother and now the Martins would cancel Tipton's contract and Mr Tipton was sure to fire her. She sank on the flour behind the giant plant. She buried her face in her legs. Right at that moment her phone vibrated. She checked to see it was a text from Zack...

_"I came by to see you but I had something important to take care of. So I had to go...but don't worry, we'll be meeting tomorrow. Take care! :)"_

The text instantly made Bailey smile. It wasn't whatshe was thinking. Even after knowing the complete truth, he still wanted to see her. That meant he liked her. Actually liked the real her. Maybe Bailey's dream of finding that one special person who'd accept her for who she really was would come true.

xxxxxxxxxxx

Cody Martin sat in his office chair lost in deep thoughts. His brother had left just a few minutes ago and he had not been the same ever since. Zack came to tell him about how he was feeling about a girl. The girl named London Tipton. All the things that Zack mentioned he felt when he saw her, were ringing an alarm in Cody's head. The way Zack talked about her, it sounded a lot more serious than liking. Whatever it was, Cody had a bad feeling about it. He had been so scared of attachment ever since his dad passed away. Being sensitive and emotional that he was at heart, he felt every tear of his mom. He just didn't want Zack to feel the same. He loved his family too much, his mom and Zack were all he had left. Cody was at ease when it came to Zack because he never got serious in any relationship, but this time he was. Zack was serious about a girl. And that's why Cody had no other option left but to meet her. He asked Zack to call London Tipton on lunch for tomorrow so he could meet the girl his brother liked so much. Cody only hoped this girl was not playing any kind of game with his brother. If that was the case, he vowed to himself to ruin her life.

What Cody didn't know was that Zack was not talking about London Tipton when he explained to him what he felt upon seeing that girl. Cody just assumed it and the reaction that he gave somehow restricted Zack to clear things up. He knew that it had been him who wanted to date London so badly. And just because it was what he wanted, Cody arranged it all up. Despite the fact that it went against his principles to ask for personal favours from the person he was doing business with. Zack couldn't tell him at that time because he thought it'd make Cody angry. He just decided to play along. Besides, he was already meeting London tomorrow, it wasn't a big deal to introduce her to Cody. He thought he'd later on tell off London nicely.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Bailey was in her room busy in reading for her tomorrow's class. The thought of tomorrow was bringing a smile to her face. She received a text from Zack Martin not too long ago that said that he wanted to introduce her to his brother. She was feeling this sense of satisfaction. She had came out clean and it really did help her out. Now she didn't have to live in a lie anymore and pretend to be someone that she was not. Bailey had a sweet smile on her face as she continued to read along the pages of her book. She then realized that she needed a pen to mark. She stood up and checked her bag for one, when suddenly her hand caught something. It was a piece of paper, identical to the one she gave to Zack. She took it out and opened it while she was laughing to herself for being so silly that she actually wrote all of that about that Richie Rich dude. But her laughter soon faded away and turned into the biggest frown as soon as she read the first word on the page..."Zack,"

"No! No no no no! This can't be happening...oh no! NOOOOOO!"

She shouted. It was all making sense now. No wonder Zack was acting as if nothing happened. He had gotten another letter, the one she wrote just 'cause she was angry on Richie Rich. "And you think I'm bad luck for you? You see what happened because of you?" She cried out loud even though she knew he could not hear her. But now she was angrier than she had ever been. If he had not made her blow, the stupid letter wouldn't even be in her purse in the fist place. She sighed and sunk in her bed. She let out a few tears, she was finally over the whole lie but there it was, ready to bite her again. Her mind was clouded with thoughts when the door to her room swung open and her mother, Eunice Pickett walked in. She immediately made her way towards Bailey's bed and sat down. She held her hand in her's and asked her concerned...

"Bailey, I heard screaming. Are you okay? Whats wrong, honey? Why are you crying?"

"Yes, mom! I'm fine. Its just that I just found out that I gave Zack the wrong letter. And I got so happy for nothing, mom. I'm still at the same spot where I started.."

Eunice heard Bailey and her heart ached to see her tears. Bailey had faced so much in life. There were things that not even Bailey herself was aware of. Being the protective mother that she was, Eunice had always kept it a secret. She couldn't tell her, couldn't let her know what she went through. Or who knew, maybe still was going through. Eunice wanted nothing but for Bailey to be happy. Everytime she heard her screaming or crying, she feared only one thing...something that she didn't even want to mention.

Eunice wiped Bailey's tears and told her to stay strong and to not give up. She told her that she should tell him the truth in-person when she'd meet him tomorrow. She made her realize that it was a better option and also told her that everything would be alright. Bailey always felt her mother's words had magical powers. She instantly felt better and when she gave a small teary smile, Eunice hugged her goodnight and left the room.

Outside Bailey's bedroom, her dad, Clyde Pickett was waiting for Eunice to come out. The moment she walked out, the couple exchanged worried glances. Clyde held out his hand and Eunice took it. He walked her towards the couch and both sat down. Eunice knew what he wanted to know so without the need of a question, she spoke up...

"It was not what we thought. She was just tensed about something, thats all..."

Clyde half sighed in relief before his face turned pale once again..."Why do you still think about it, honey? It was all over years ago. It won't happen again..."

"I wish I could believe that..." Eunice continued..."but I can't. You know what happened last time? I fear this is not over...I fear that...she...she'll come back...what if she comes back, Clyde? What will happen to our Bailey then?"

Clyde held her hand tightly and started rubbing her back..."she won't come back, Eunice. Have some faith. It had been a few years..."

"But...but she was never gone for good. She could come back, Clyde. She will...No! My poor Bailey...she won't let her live."

Clyde tried to take a hold of his wife as she was having a panic attack..."Eunice! Listen to me...she's not coming back. You hear me?"

Eunice gave the most terrifying look to Clyde..."If she ever came back, she'd ruin everything for my Bailey. She won't let her live. Natalia won't let our Bailey live..."

A/N: Ohhhhh! Drama! :P

Read & Review, my lovely readers! xD

Love, Ash!


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Sorry for the one week wait but hey? I kept my promise! Haha! (: I'd love to get ideas 'cause I'm kind of on a writer's block /: so please send 'em in. Anyways, enjoy this chapter!**

_**Out of a Dream into a Nightmare**_

_As Cody Martin stood impatiently at the altar waiting for his bride to walk down the aisle, he couldn't help but think this was a dream. He was getting married? It was a surprise to everyone. Nobody ever thought Cody Martin would ever get married and yet there he was. A smiled cracked on his face as he thought of the girl he ended up falling in love with. The same girl who he once hated and couldn't stand. Yes, Cody was getting married to Bailey Pickett. The thought of her soon becoming Bailey Martin was giving him a sense of satisfaction. When he first got Bailey to be his, he thought he was the luckiest man alive. But he corrected himself. Now that it was the day she'd officially become his for the rest of his life, he felt even luckier. Lost in his thoughts with a bright smile on his face, he waited for the girl of his dreams. And as soon as his eyes laid on her, he went breathless. WOW! She looked beautiful. She had the brightest of smile on her face and her beauty glowed in the light of the sun emerging from the windows. As she took small steps on the aisle, his heartbeat kept getting faster. She steeped up and Cody held out his hand which she gladly took. He couldn't understand his feelings but it was like he owned the world. Never did he feel so content, so at ease. She made him complete._

_The priest started the ceremony. Cody couldn't tear his eyes apart from her. Her big brown eyes were sparkling with pure love for him and he just felt blessed to be the one she agreed to share her everything with. The priest was in the middle of reciting when somebody's phone started to rang. Cody checked his pockets but he didn't have his phone on him. Right then, out of no where a man who Cody had no idea of, emerged from the crowd and handed him his phone..."Answer your phone, Cody..."_

Cody was awoken by the annoying sound of his alarm. With shock overtaking him, he sat up-right on his bed. It took Cody quite a while before realising that it was just a dream. He wiped a drop or two of sweat off of his forehead. He sighed in a bit of relief..."what a nightmare that was..." Even though he hated the mere idea of marriage and hated that Bailey girl even more, it was him that actually had this dream. He tried to convince himself that it was just due to his psychological fear of marriages and emotional commitments. And his fear was converted into a dream.

Cody was trying very hard to deny the fact that the dream actually made him happy. But his face couldn't hide everything. As he was getting ready for the day, Zack entered his room...

"Morning, Cody! I just came here to remind you that you asked me to bring London for lunc...why are you smiling?" He stopped in mid sentence and asked.

Cody was in denial. He shook his head and ignored Zack's question..."I remember, Zack. Be at my office by 4. Please don't be late. My schedule is already set and I can not afford any delays."

Zack knew his brother and he knew Cody only ignored a question when he didn't wanna lie and the truth won't be the correct choice. "You completely ignored my question. That spells something fishy with a capital F"

Cody looked away, picking up his tie, he started tying it..."Nothing is fishy, Zack. I'm getting late and I really don't have time for these games."

The reply seemed a bit acceptable to Zack so he decided to let his brother off the hook..."If you say so, buddy. I'll see you." With that, Zack left his room.

Cody sighed in relief. Why was he afraid of being caught smiling? It wasn't like it was a crime but to him, lying was a crime. And he couldn't possible tell anyone the reason that had gotten him to be so happy. Mostly because he himself didn't want to accept it. Besides, today was the day he was suppose to focus more on Zack. It was the day when he'd finally meet London Tipton, the girl Zack liked so much. Cody could only hope this girl was all he'd want in a girl for his brother.

xxxxxxxxxx

Bailey Pickett woke up to the sound of her chicken alarm clock. When her family moved out of the farm to come live in Boston, the chicken clock was all she had as a reminder of her life back on the farm. No matter how bad Bailey wanted out of that small town, she still missed it.

Bailey quickly got out of the bed. It was a really big day for her. She was meeting the Martins for lunch. The part that made her nervous to her core was that she knew she'd be going in as London Tipton and coming out as Bailey Pickett. She could only hope that they'd believe her and accept her as who she was. Bailey had gotten to know Zack Martin a little over the past week but she had no clue of his brother Cody. She heard a few stories from Mr Tipton, he was famous to be the most arrogant man in business. It was giving her shivers. But she knew that there was no other way left. This just had to be done. Bailey had never been a liar and it was making her feel sick that she continued a stupid lie for so many days just to save her job.

"Today is gonna be a long day." She mumbled to herself and sighed..."Lets do this!"

xxxxxxxxx

The huge and luxurious gates to the Martin Empire opened to welcome her in. The girl who always visited big hotels or companies as an ordinary employee, was at one of the world's leading companies as the head's brother's girlfriend. Sure she was not Bailey Pickett to them, but the fact that the head himself invited her there was giving her a sense of accomplishment, a sense of honour and pride.  
She took calm steps towards the reception and asked for Cody Martin. The receptionist dialled a number and busied herself in taking the orders. Bailey patiently waited. As she was finished, she turned to her..."Mr Martin is expecting you. Take the elevator to the top floor and go straight to his conference room. Have a nice day, ma'am." She smiled enthusiastically. Of course it was just because it was her job to smile, but Bailey was already liking the attention.

Bailey proceeded towards the room she was suppose to see the 'other' Martin. Zack had dropped her off there and went to get some work done. She would have to deal with the arrogant nut in the Martin Family tree all by herself. As she reached her desired location, she was greeted by another smiling man, who she thought was Cody Martin. The man was dressed in a suit, with a very warm smile he said "Hello" to her and opened her the door to the room. Bailey couldn't help but praise how down to earth he was for a man who owned a huge empire.

The moment Bailey stepped in, she was in awe of the beauty and architect of the room. For just a conference room, it was very luxuriously designed. A large area of the room was covered by a huge round table, surrounding it were comfortable leather chairs that Bailey could tell were much more comfortable than her bed at home. The walls were decorated with fancy art. There was a wall at the corner that was dedicated to the certificates the Martins earned and the achievements they made. On her right most, there was a small but again very luxurious and cozy sitting area. She assumed that was for special guests. She was still taking in the beautiful environment when the man behind her came up to her and gestured towards a separated siting area..."Have a seat, Ma'am. Mr Martin will be right over."

Bailey obliged and took a seat in one of the most comfortable couches she had ever sat on. She was smiling from ear to ear. All the nervousness that she felt before coming here was now gone. All she could think about was how amazing that place was. She picked up a magazine from the table in front of her and flipped through a couple of pages. But right then, she heard the door open and someone came in. He was a bit far so she couldn't make out his face, all she could see was that he was tall and had blonde hair. Then it occurred her. He got a little closer and she knew exactly who he was. She froze in her tracks...it was...it was RICHIE RICH!

Fear washed over her. She didn't know how to make a run for it. Fortunately he was busy with his phone and still hadn't noticed her..."Sorry to keep you waiting, miss Tipton. I was just..."  
Bailey was about to turn around and run away. She just didn't want anybody to find out like that. When she was caught by someone. She wanted to tell the truth herself so she would not look like a liar. But it seemed like it was her unlucky day. He looked up. The expressions on his face told everything she needed to know. A mix of confusion and hate that soon turned into pure anger and rage...

"YOU? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" He paused as if he was thinking something..."You...you were...pretending to be London Tipton? Weren't you?"

Bailey just closed her eyes as a tear rolled down. She wasn't ready for the humiliation that was coming to her. She immediately thought to explain everything to him before he'd get any wrong idea but again, it was too late...the idea that he got was enough to kill her...

"A cheep gold digger. Thats what you are, huh? A lying, crap gold digger." He paused again and got closer to her..."should I just turn you in now on account of Identity Theft?" He said grabbing her by the wrist tightly...

Bailey just looked at him in horror.

A/N: I was originally gonna finish this scene in one chapter but the conversation was too long in my head. So I decided to break it up. Besides, a cliffy is sometimes good, right? (:

**Hope you guys are still with me and hooked. Read and Review, fellows! It makes my day! (:  
Love, Ash!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: OMG! I broke my own record of 5 reviews each chapter. I got 10 for the last one (: I am so excited! :D Thanks a bunch to all of you who take your precious time out for this. You guys RULE! :D  
Enjoy this chapter! (:**

**_"Heart of Stone or a Cover Shield?"_**

It was not like Cody Martin was a morning person to start with, but seeing her in his conference room just triggered his anger to the level that all of his employees feared. The moment he saw the same girl, the girl he had married in his dream, he didn't know what possessed him but he felt this urge to shout and scream. When he woke up that morning with a dream that he considered as a nightmare, a part of him felt happy but a part of him felt this fear inside of him that he couldn't quite understand. This girl was the last person he would want to see that day and yet there she was. The mere thought of her in his sight was more than enough to make him angry but right then, there were other reasons for him to blow up.

For one, she was in a room that was so private that not even his family could access without his permission. As far as Cody remembered, he only gave tow people the entry pass to his Conference room. His brother and London Tipton. It was pretty easy to put two and two together upon seeing a girl there that he knew was not London Tipton. Realising the fact that she was there impostoring as a rich heiress made him absolutely furious. For Cody, his mom and brother were the two most important people in the world. He was way too protective of them and he hated everything and everybody that tried to hurt either of them. His rage towards her increased upon learning that she was playing with his brother.

Cody wasn't realizing it, but his anger kept going up with each processed thought. He would've continued in his head but a sudden movement in his hand brought him to reality. He felt her moving her hand that was still tightly griped in his own. He looked down and saw her struggling to set free. Then he turned his attention to her face, it clearly radiated pain. An old tear was lying just above her lip while there were two fresh ones in the corner of her eyes waiting to roll down.

"You're hurting me" she winced with pain. He immediately got the idea and released her hand. Feeling bad for putting her through pain, he apologised. As soon as the words "I'm sorry" escaped from his mouth, Bailey Pickett felt a little better. She took it as her chance to finally clear things up...

"Look...Cody! Its not what it looks like. I know seeing me as London Tipton might give you the idea of me being all that...the way you described me. But I'm not. I was just helping Mr Tipton. He was the one who asked me to do this..."

"Wait! Hold right there..." Cody cut her off..."you expect me to believe that Mr Tipton put you off to pretend to be his daughter to go on a date with his "would be" business partner's brother?"

"After the way you reacted, I expect nothing out of you. But it is the truth." Bailey knew she was not in the position to shoot statements for the sake of argument like she always did with him. But she couldn't help it. He always made her so mad at him. And it seemed like she was doing a pretty good job of making him mad at her.

"You really think you should be talking to me like that right now?"

Just then she realized that he was not the one she was supposed to be giving explanations to. She lied to Zack and if anybody had the right to ask her questions, it was him and not the Riche Rich.

"You really shouldn't be talking to me like that either, Sir. Its between your brother and I."

Cody felt his anger rising up again. He was about to say something when he heard the door open. They both turned around and saw Zack coming in. He walked up straight to where Cody and Bailey were standing..."Sorry I'm late, guys. Good that you two have already met. Cody this is London Tip..." Just then Zack noticed the furious expression on his brother's face. He looked between him and Bailey before he turned his attention to her..."Please tell me you didn't ask him if he has a girlfriend? It always makes him mad."

Cody just couldn't stand it. His brother was too naive and he was scared that when he'd find out about it, he'd be shattered. This girl was the only one he ever got a bit more serious for. But this just had to be done. Cody had to tell him everything...

"Zack, I know this will come off as a shocker to you but...the thing is...this is not London Tipton."

"Huh?" That was all Zack could say. Cody knew his confusion was justified so he started again..."She's an imposter, Zack. She was just pretending to be London."

"But why?" Zack asked, still confused. Bailey waited as the two brother chatted. It seemed like the topic of their conversation was to insult her.

"Well, supposedly Mr Tipton put her off to this. Can you believe it? Even her reasoning doesn't make any sense. And she expects us to..."

"Uhhh! Would you just let me explain everything?" Bailey said cutting Cody off. "NO!" Cody exclaimed turning his attention to her..."I will not let you feed any more lies to my brother."

Bailey was not enjoying all of that. She knew if she'd be given a chance, she could clear things. But thanks to the Richie Rich, she was not getting any. She turned to him furiously..."Oh yeah? If I'm such a big liar and a gold digger like you said, then why didn't I take my chance on you, huh? You're rich too. Richer I suppose."

"Because I wouldn't give you the time of my day. You knew that..."

"You're really occupied in your own little world. Did it ever occur to you that I was just not interested?"

Zack was looking back and forth between his brother and the girl who he just found out was not London Tipton. They were arguing like cats and dogs. He was the one standing there clueless..."Guys, as much as I'm enjoying this, I have to break this lovely talk of yours. I am missing something HUGE here and I need answers. Right now."

They both turned to him and each attempted to explain him the story. Zack listened to both of them carefully. Many a times, they both lost their focus on Zack and started their own little chat. Somewhere in the middle of their heated conversation, Zack felt this hurt inside of him. He didn't think he liked that girl so much that finding out she was lying could've been hurtful for him. But it was...not because of his feelings for her but the fact that he was played and nobody cared how he'd feel. Zack accepted Bailey's explanations and somehow did agree that she didn't have any choice. But also thought that her agreeing to doing it in the first place was wrong. The worse was that she didn't even once try to tell him...

"I did, Zack." Bailey exclaimed between light sobs. During the argument, some of the comments thrown at her had brought tears in her eyes. Cody's harsh tone and Zack's painful voice...it was all too much for her to take..."I tried to tell you. I sent you a letter but it got mixed up and you never got the real one..."

"Wait! So it was you who sent me a letter saying something like..."What do you think of yourself, Mr Richie Rich?" And a bunch of other hatred filled lines?"

Bailey was about to respond when Cody started laughing. This was the first time anyone laughed in that room since they got there..."So you were writing about me in that elevator, huh?"

Bailey gave him a dead glare and then turned his attention to Zack..."You got the wrong one. The original one was this." She quickly dug through her purse and produced a piece of paper. She opened it and showed it to him..."I knew my job was at risk but I was willing to take a chance. I wanted to tell you the truth, Zack."

There were a few things that Zack agreed upon. It made sense and he couldn't deny that she was compiled and didn't have much of an option. But even accepting all of that wasn't making him any less hurt..."You know what's funny? How each of you in this whole situation has an argument to give. Mr Tipton had to do it, you had to do it, you couldn't tell me because of your job. But not even one of you thought about how I'd feel in the process? Just like everytime, I was played again."

"I'm sorry." Bailey said sincerely. There was nothing that seemed appropriate to her at that moment. Even though she didn't intend to do it, she had hurt him..."I forgive you." Zack exclaimed with the same amount of sincerity..."But its not easy to forget all of this right away..." He looked between his brother and her. It was still a mystery from where did Cody know this girl. But it didn't seem a proper time to solve it. He turned to Bailey once again and weakly smiled..."I'll see you around." With that Zack walked away.

The sound of the doors closing behind him made Bailey shiver. She realized that she was alone with the cold hearted brother once again. She felt his gaze on her. She looked up and wiped away the tear that was desperately finding its way out of her eyes.

"I will never forgive you for hurting my brother..." Cody harshly stated...she knew this was coming. She waited there patiently for more humiliation to come and sure enough he continued..."You know? I hated you before, just for being a girl. But now? I hate you even more for being the girl who broke my brother's heart."

"What do you know about a heart?" Bailey asked coldly..."Do you even have one?" She pushed him aside to get out of there. The same place that was fascinating her a while ago, was now suffocating her. She waled past the round table but before she could make it to the door, she felt a hand grabbing hers and with one fluid motion, she was turned around to face the same blue eyes, filled with anger, hate and rage...

"You can't just walk away like that, Miss 'Pumpkin'. You'll have to pay for what you did to my brother. I'll make sure that you don't see another happy day. I'll make your life a living hell..."

Bailey just shook her head..."You know what? I don't hate you. I'm not even mad at you for doing all of this to me. I pity you. Try all you want to make my life a living hell. While I don't have to do anything because you're already living in one."

Cody glared at her and was just about to throw a comeback but she wasn't finished..."I rather have a wish to make for you..." She smiled. "You hate girls right? I pray for that day to come when a girl will come into your life and will change everything. That girl will show you the error of your ways. She'll teach you how to behave. You'll fall in love, Mr Cody Martin. One day you will. And that day, you'll realize how wrong you were. And then, you will never be able to forgive yourself. Never."

That was all Bailey had to say. She turned around and left the room. Before Cody could even understand what she said, she was gone.

For both Cody and Bailey, rest of the day went in deep thoughts. For Bailey, she just couldn't get over the things Cody said about her. She knew she wasn't all that. But him saying it did sting. She was hurt by his words. More than she had ever been. It was then that she knew that she hated Cody Martin more than anything.

For Cody, he just kept recalling what Bailey had said and couldn't understand what she meant. Was that suppose to be a blackmail? Or was it really a prayer like she stated? Lost in his own world of endless thoughts, he reached his home. To find Zack still awake sitting in the living room all by himself hurt him. It was all because of that girl. He hated her so much that it was hard to not get angry at the thought of her. He got closer to Zack and sat down beside him...

"Hey, Buddy! How are you doing?" Cody asked, softly placing a hand on his shoulder...he turned around and smiled..."I'm alright." He said, it was more like a whisper. Cody knew that he was not alright. He wanted to ask him more but he continued himself..."Its not that I loved her or anything...But I was willing to give this serious relationship thing a try. I thought she was different." He sighed..."she was just the same. She agreed to play me for a fool for Mr Tipton's money? How easy are my feelings for everyone?"

Zack himself didn't know what was hurting him so much. Maybe it was just the fact that he was being fooled. Maybe it was just his ego and there was nothing bigger than that. But for Cody, it was a huge deal. Zack was not doing a good job at explaining his brother his feelings and Cody who was overly protective of him was getting all the wrong ideas. He felt that Bailey broke his brother's heart. Cody was determined to teach her a lesson. He had heard so many rumours about London and her ways of handling the situations. Mr Tipton and his daughter were feared by many of their employees for the same reason...

"That girl..." Cody continued..."She really wanted to be London Tipton. Now I'll show her how London Tipton would've reacted if somebody had fooled her like that..."

**A/N: Don't you just feel SO MAD at Cody? : I'm the one writing him and I still feel like hitting him. Ugghhh! Hahaha! :D**

**Anyways, Read & Review, beautiful readers! (:  
Love, Ash! xx**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Thank you so much all the reviews. And yes, to my precious reviewer, Cody is around that age. I mentioned he is in his mid 20s. Pick up his age as you wish. :)  
I'm sorry for the long wait :( I was just so busy with school :/ anyways...here's a little birthday treat for my lovely readers. Its my birthday and I decided to post the longest chapter...yet, as a treat! xD Do review and just make my day? Thank you, fellows. :)  
Enjoy!**

_**"Out of Fire into the Frying Pan"**_

After the chaos of the last few days, things started to went back to normal. As a week passed, everybody got more settled in their daily life routine. But for all three of them, there were few things different. And neither knew that those few things would again lead up to something so much bigger.

For Zack, he was over the fact of being fooled just the next day. He couldn't lie to himself any longer, having a forced out serious relationship was probably the most bizarre idea he had ever came up with. He was actually glad that it turned out to be the way it did. He knew now that if he'd ever fall in love, it'd be natural and would happen itself. What he didn't know was that it would be so soon. One faithful day Zack Martin ran into none other than the real London Tipton herself. To find out she was the same girl who gave him the letter and the girl who he got so attracted to, Zack just couldn't refrain his excitement. London was easy going, a lot different than that Bailey girl. The longer Zack talked to her, the more he got to know how similar she was to him. She barely graduated high school just like he did. She also did not do anything but shopping. Much like Zack who spent his hours playing video games and just wasting time. The fact that she was absolutely gorgeous was just a cherry on top. Zack already felt smitten. She was so much like him. It was like she was only meant for him. They went out a couple of times. Zack enjoyed his each date with her and for him, two weeks were the longest relationship he had ever been in. And he fully planned on continuing it.

While Zack was enjoying his life, it was completely a different story for Cody. Everything for him seemed to be falling apart. The same person who once enjoyed every second of his work was now having trouble focusing. After the last time he had met Bailey Pickett, he had promised himself to ruin her life. But he couldn't. He half decided to tell Mr Tipton about her little act to get her fired. But something stopped him. He didn't know what it was and he didn't like it either. When he saw the upset look on his brother's face, he was so sure that he wanted to punish the person who caused this but he just couldn't. Cody was on a heart-felt debate with his own conscience for days until he finally decided to forget about everything. He would be lying to himself if he'd say he really wanted bad for her. So he thought it was better to just let it all go. And since after that, he never really thought about it or her. However, she did seem to appear in his dreams almost every night for no apparent reason. At some point he'd see her yelling at him in his dream, which Cody completely got because thats what happened everytime they met. What Cody didn't get was why he'd see them together, "in love" or worse, getting married? His dreams were indeed playing a rather strange game with him.

However there was another problem that he was facing, his mom. After the whole fiasco, Zack got to meet the real London and he couldn't be happier. In fact he was so happy that he told everything to his mom. Carrey Martin was both happy and angry all at the same time. She was happy for Zack but when she found out about Cody's little dual with a girl, she was furious. It was since that one night that Cody couldn't even breath without his mom reminding him of a deal she made with him. That one night when Cody got home, he was greeted by his mother's soaringly short one liner...

"Sit down, Cody."

Cody Martin was stopped in his tracks. The only times his mom threw a one liner and got to her point without beating about the bush were either she was really angry at her kids or somebody just called her old. And the sound of her voice, clearly was an indicator towards the first one. Cody obliged and without saying a word he took a seat on the couch next to where his mom was sitting. He decided not to speak but after waiting for a few minutes when he still only received silence, he spoke up...

"Am I in trouble?"

Carrey just looked at him then smiled..."Oh no. What made you think that?... OFCOURSE YOU'RE IN TROUBLE!" She shouted. Cody was still puzzled. A million things were running in his head but he just decided to let her finish. She stood up and paced back and forth before sitting down again as she continued..."Zack told me everything. How could you behave like that with a girl? Cody, i raised you better than this. What were you thinking?"

Cody sighed. This girl somehow had vowed to ruin his life one way or the other. Even in her absence, she still managed to mess things up for him. "I'm sure Zack told you everything and for that I'd have to punch him in the neck later..." He felt his mom's dead glare so he cleared his throat and continued..."Mom, you have to see my side of the story as well. I know I kind of misbehaved but she brought it out of me. She pretended to be someone else to go out with Zack. She was a liar, mom. Don't you think I had the right to be mad?"

"NO!" Carrey exclaimed angrily. "If anybody had the right it was Zack. And even he didn't have the right to shout at her or misbehave with her. I've taught you to always show respect and curtsy towards women. Treat them like ladies. When did you forget about all of this, Cody?"

Cody just didn't know what to say. He didn't feel it was such a big deal but his mom seemed to be making it. He wanted to clear up the situation but Carrey spoke up again..."This...your attitude, your rudeness and hatred towards women has gone too far. I don't even know why you've become like this, Cody. Why do you do this?"

This was something that nobody would ever understand. He hated girls for a reason and no matter how hard he tried to tell himself not to, a part of him always felt a little better by hating on all the girls. Cody blamed himself for his father's death and by just being mad at girls in general, he felt less guilty. He always thought that he owed it to his dad to be this way. "I...I don't know, mom." Cody told...his voice went a little high pitched and his eyes developed fresh tears. Carrey never understood his behaviour but she knew she had got to do something about it. She stood up and went to where he was sitting. She asked him to look up and as he did she pointed out her index finger..."1 month, you have only 1 month, Cody. Find a girl you like, you actually like. Bring her to me in that time. I'm tired of your attitude. I want you to quit this, okay?"

Cody looked at her surprised...what was she even trying to say? "You want me to force date someone?"

"Yes!" Carrey said as if it was the most natural thing in the world..,"Look, it might sound ridiculous, but trust me...it is not. Once you open up and look for a girl, you might just realize that you're wrong to hate all the girls for God knows what reason. And you might even fall in love. You will..."

"Woah! Hold up..." Cody held out his hand cutting her off..."and what made you think that I'd do such a thing? You said, go date and you assumed I will? Thats sweet..." Cody laughed and fell back in the couch resting his head. However Carrey wasn't done...she passed a rather evil grin before speaking up again..."I assume you will do it if you don't want the Martin Empire and all of the money you've made to be taken away from you."

It was now Carrey's turn to sit back and relax on the couch, while Cody stood up, shocked at what his mom said..."WHAT? You're kidding right?"

"Does it look like I'm kidding?" Carrey asked pointing towards the serious frown she was wearing. Cody tried to read her features. He desperately wanted to know what was she on to. But drawing a blank, he asked..."you're seriously going to black mail me into dating a girl? MOM! What's wrong with you?"

Carrey stood up angrily..."what's wrong with me is that my son hates all women. I'm one too and I can't stand the idea of someone, let alone my own son be this way."

Cody's mind was still processing the information, when Carrey had her final words of the deal to finish..."Now, lets finalise the deal, shall we? You bring your "girlfriend" to me by the end of the month, and I will transfer all the property to your name. When I'll know you're in love, I'll instantly give you everything. BUT, if somehow you fail to do it, I'll take away the company and everything else you own. Get it?"

"Mom this is not fair..." Cody cried out. Carrey was somehow throughly enjoying it. She smiled and walked past him. "There will be no further discussion. Good night, Cody." And with that she went up the stairs. Leaving behind a very confused Cody Martin.

Since after that night, it had been a week and Cody got a call from his mom every hour to remind him about their deal. Any thought of Cody of his mom's idea being a midnight madness was completely gone within a day. He knew he had to do something about it and soon. But his only problem was that he didn't even know any girl. How could he date one?

For Bailey Pickett, the last two weeks had been absolute torture. Just the next day after her last and final dual with Mr Richie Rich, she reached the Tipton Hotel to find Mr Tipton waiting for her. It seemed like that Cody was really a low-life person. She assumed he had told him everything and thats why he fired her. Bailey lost her job and her respect. People around were calling her names like she was a gold digger and back stabber. The very reason it became quite difficult for Bailey to get another job. Her life was crashing down on her. And it was all because of Cody Martin. She hated him so much that at times she thought that it was humanly impossible to hate someone that much.

As if Bailey's life was already not messed up, a certain thing happened that day that threw her in pure rage towards Cody Martin. Bailey's elder sister, Peyton Pickett worked at the Martin Empire. She was married and had a little girl. She started working there not too long ago but ever since then, she seemed to be very satisfied with her job. That day, Peyton came rushing through the house, loudly calling out Bailey's name. She busted in her room and yelled..."YOU! I HATE YOU."

Bailey stood up shocked from her bed to face her furious sister..."well hello to you too." Bailey smirked..."What's wrong? Why are you so angry?"

"Oh I'll tell you what's wrong" Peyton shouted again..."I got fired. You know why? Because I'm your sister. Due to your stupid 'rivalry' with Cody Martin, I was fired. My manager told me I'm not working properly but I know thats not true. Its because of Cody and your little war with him. You ruined my job..." She sank down in Bailey's bed and let out a few tears..."I'm sorry!" She uttered sincerely..."Its just that, I really needed that job. And now its gone..."

Bailey didn't know what to say. She thought Cody Martin was a professional and he'd never let a personal grudge come in the way of his business. She never thought he'd go so low. But she was way off. Bailey was fine with not giving him an answer up until he was only messing with her, but now it had gone too far. She just had to do something to stop him. She sat down next to her sister and put an arm around her shoulder to comfort her. Even though it was nothing intentional, she still somehow blamed herself for all of it..."Peyton, don't worry. That Cody Martin will pay for what he did. And I'll make sure of it..." Before Peyton could ask anything, Bailey stood up and rushed through the house to go God knows where.

Meanwhile Cody was in his office with Zack, utilising the free time he had between meetings to come up with a solution to his mom's given problem. No matter what he thought, nothing seemed appropriate enough. He had worked so hard for the company and he just couldn't let it all go for no reason. Zack's ideas didn't quite fit the situation's delicacy either. "Maybe you should just hire a girlfriend" Zack uttered laughing. He was clearly very amused by the whole mess.

"This is not funny, Zack. I really need some good advice. You're just wasting my time." Cody said annoyed. Zack just didn't get it. And he probably never would.

"I don't understand what you're so worked up about? Why don't you quit worrying for once and actually go ask a girl out? I'm sure any girl would agree to date you." Zack asked confused.

"I would. But there is just one little problem...I DON'T know any girl."

Zack began laughing..."Oh yeah, I forgot." He paused and got serious. He got a bit closer and started in a whisper..."I know who you can date...that secretary of yours? She's pretty..."

Cody was now losing it. His brother was probably over there to mock him..."My secretary is 35, married and have kids..."

"Oh!" Zack uttered like he didn't know that already..."but hey, you know so much about her. Do you like her, Cody?" Zack passed a sheepish grin.

"Okay thats it, Zack. If you're not going to help me, you can just leave." Cody's annoyance was now getting to the optimum level.

Zack fell back in his chair again..."Oh alright! I'll stop. But its not so easy you know? You don't know anybody. And its not like a girl would come busting through your doors, shouting your name..."

Right at that moment, the doors to Cody's cabin flung open and the same girl who both of them recognized immediately was Bailey Pickett, busted in and shouted..."CODY MARTIN"

Both Zack and Cody looked at each other and Zack couldn't hold in his laughter. The irony of that happening just left him laughing. While Cody was equally shocked at what happened, he refrained from laughing. Or it was like he was just not amused with her presence.

"What are you doing here?" It was Cody to ask her first. She was clearly not pleased to be in his office either. And by the looks on her face, she really didn't bring in any good news. She walked closer to the table where Cody was sitting, putting both of her hands on the table, she glared..."I'll tell you why am I here. How dare you do that to my sister?"

"Pardon me? I did what? To your sister? You had a sister?" Cody asked confused and clearly clueless. But she still had a lot to say...

"Oh don't you act all innocent with me. I know it was you who fired her from your company just because you hate me. How could you do that? I thought you were too professional to let something personal come in between business."

Cody was more surprised than ever. She had a sister, who supposedly worked at his Company and apparently she was fired and she thought it was him who did it? Great. That's exactly what Cody needed. Some petty problems to deal with while he had his whole empire on stake..."Okay first, I am that professional. Second I didn't even know you had a sister who worked here. Why would I fire anybody for a personal grudge? And I don't even remember firing anybody. It must've been her work, Bailey that got her fired. It wasn't me. I'm not even directly responsible for every single employee. I have managers..."

"You know what? Save it." Bailey cut him off..."I know it was you. First you got Mr Tipton to fire me then my sister? How low can you go? You really are going to ruin my life, huh?" Bailey's eyes got filled up with tears. Cody couldn't get it but somehow her tears felt like these sharp knives on his heart. He felt bad. He didn't do anything and he didn't owe her any explanation but it still felt important to him to tell her he was not responsible for all of that...

"Bailey look..." Cody started sincerely..."I may have said I'd ruin your life but I just said it, I was angry thats all. I didn't do anything. I didn't talk to Mr Tipton or fire your sister. Believe me. Please?"

Cody's voice reflected honesty. On the other chair, Zack was surprised to hear Cody say "please" to someone. Everybody knew that Cody Martin could be a lot of things but he was never a liar. He never lied. The times when he thought he didn't want to tell the truth, he just remained silent. However Bailey was still having a hard time believing Cody after the way he acted...

"I don't believe you..." She bluntly stated..."I can almost bet it was you behind all of this. But just get this thing in your head right now. Your issue is with me, not my family. Keep it to that. I don't care what you do to me but STAY AWAY FROM MY FAMILY. Get it?" She shouted and turned around to leave but before she opened the door, she stopped and turned back around to face him..."One more thing, I'll never forgive you for everything you did to me..." With that she left the room.

Both Cody and Zack were left speechless and shocked. "WOW!" It was Zack this time who spoke up first...

"I don't get it..." Cody finally found it in himself to speak..."I didn't do anything...it was not me to tell Mr Tipton, then who did?"

"I don't know..." Zack stated and got up from his chair to leave..,"Oh would you look at the time? Its late...see ya." He was almost out of the room when Cody stopped him..."Not so fast, Zack. I need to ask you a few questions." Zack's body language told Cody what he needed to know. Somehow, Zack was behind all of this...he came back and took his seat...

"Alright! But make it quick, I'm getting late..." Zack was trying to not make eye contact..."Ahan?" Cody knew what was going on. He knew his brother too well to not pick up on when something was wrong..."tell me what you did?"

"Okay, Fine!" Zack sighed..."I might have something to do with getting Bailey fired. BUT, it was not intentional, I just accidentally told London about it and she must've told her dad. Thats it. And I have nothing to do with her sister. I don't even come here to do anything like that..."

Cody listened to the whole thing then fell back and sighed..."great! Now she thinks I'm the worst, most low life person in this world..."

"Why do you care what she thinks about you?" Zack asked..."I don't care..." Cody held out a hand in his defence...

"Right, you don't" Zack stated sarcastically. He was too obvious. From the moment Zack saw two of them together, he somehow knew there was something between them that even they didn't know. He paused and something hit him..."HEY! I just have this brilliant idea that would resolve all of your problems. Mom will be happy and you'll get rid of this Bailey problem too..."

"Really? How's that possible..." Cody asked anxious...

"It is possible and I'll tell you how. But you have to promise me that you won't get mad..." When Cody nodded in agreement, Zack continued...

"So here's what I was thinking..."

**_To be continued..._**

**A/N: Liked it? Please review, guys. They encourage me to continue!  
P.S I love you all :)  
Love, Ash!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: THANK YOU :D seriously a big big big thank you for all the wishes. You guys are the radest people I know. (: your reviews made everything so much better. Thank you. Keep supporting me, guys. I need you. Haha! :)  
Enjoy this chapter!**

_**"Pretend Game Begins Again"**_

Cody Martin waited patiently for Zack to reveal his big idea. But the more patient he tried to be, the more frustrated he got with the dramatic silent effect that Zack was creating. He had a spaced out look on his face. Cody observed as he continued to live in his day dream. Finally he decided to break the minutes long built ice. He cleared his throat to get his brother's attention..."Any minute you're ready to tell me that idea, Zack. No need to hurry, really." Cody sarcastically shoot...

"Well excuse me for thinking if there's anything really important I need to do before I die..." Zack responded...Cody just gave him the "What the heck?" look..."You know, just in case you kill me after hearing the idea..." Zack calmly stated. He was such a drama queen. Cody thought to himself...

"Oh would you quit exaggerating and spill your stupid idea already?" Zack was already getting on his last nerve. He was so impossible to talk to and not be mad. Zack finally gave in and laughed..."Okay...I was just teasing you." He leaned forward and lightly whispered..."This is very confidential, so it better not leave this room. You hear me, brother?" Cody just rolled his eyes. It wasn't like Cody was in a very good mood and Zack was only making it worse. "You're the one who won't be able to leave this room alive if you continue fooling around..." Cody threatened and Zack was in laughter once again. For some reason, he just really enjoyed messing with him. His anger was a terror to every single one of his employee but to Zack, it was the most amusing thing in the world.

"Alright alright! I'll stop." Zack smiled and lay back in his chair..."So you know how you have two problems at hand right now. One is mom and the other just left this room." Zack waited for Cody to catch up to him and as he nodded, he continued..."And the problem with mom is not so easy to handle since you don't know any girl, right?" Zack paused again for a signal from Cody and then immediately continued as he received it..."But...you know one girl. And that girl is Bailey."

Zack finished with a smile and waited for Cody to respond. In his opinion, he had explained his idea clearly...but for Cody, it didn't even make any sense..."So? What about it?" Cody asked..."knowing her is my other problem, remember? What exactly is your big idea?"

Zack just sighed..."You idiot! Your other problem will solve your biggest problem, and in the process will solve itself as well. You get it?" Cody again just looked at him surprised...what did he even want to say?

"I MEAN JUST DATE HER!" Zack slightly shouted. Now Cody got what he was saying. He wanted him to take Bailey out on a date and then introduce her to mom. He was actually right, that would solve his problems. But only the thought of it was enough to disturb him. Even though he completely got it, he acted as if he didn't..."Her who?" Cody asked. "HER, her..." Zack shouted again, now gesturing towards the door from where Bailey left a while ago. "What the door?" Cody fake laughed and Zack just looked at him. He knew full well that Cody was doing it on purpose..."You know exactly who 'her' I'm talking about. Stop playing..."

"NO!" Cody defended..."I don't know...and even if I did know it, I sure hope for your sake that its not the 'her' I think you're talking about..." It was clearly now Cody who was overacting and exaggerating the whole situation. Zack decided to calmly explain the potential benefits of his idea...

"Look, Cody! You may think that this is bizarre, but it would really work. I'm not saying you really have to date her. Just pretend date her. Cody, she's in need. Didn't you hear? She doesn't have a job, her sister doesn't either. If we make a deal with her, the way she wants it...her terms, I'm sure she'd agree. Plus, it'd be easy to connivence mom as well. When mon will know that you're dating the same girl you got in to a fight with, she'll question for sure that if you liked her, why'd you behave that way with her. And on that you can say that you were just upset over the fact that she was dating me and not you. You can tell mom that you always liked her but was afraid to tell her. She'd believe it right away. And once she transfer the company to your name, you can just have a fake 'break up' and then you both can go your separate ways. Your life's worry will be gone forever."

Zack exhaled as he finished. Even though Cody was more than just tired of the whole "pretend" game, he had to admit that Zack's idea was pretty workable. All he had to do was make Bailey meet his mom once. He'd connivence her that he had loved this girl all along. It'd be that much easier to make his mother believe about Bailey than any other girl. Plus, it'd save him a lot of time to find a girl. "You're actually on to something this time, Zack" Cody appreciated..."Now, all we have to do is get Bailey to agree to this." Cody wandered off in his thoughts as he pointed that out to Zack. This was possibly the hardest part of their plan. After all they've been through, the chances of her agreeing to help him were slim to none. However Zack seemed to be pretty confident about what he was doing. He took his phone out and gave it to Cody..."Here, call her now. Invite her over and we'll discuss about our plan..."

Without even thinking what he was saying, Cody uttered..."How on earth you have my girlfriend's number?"

The moment these words escaped his mouth, he realized what he said, or it was Zack's laughter that made him realize it..."Not bad, Cody." Zack joked..."you're already calling her your girlfriend. Good going, little brother."

Cody just held his head and sighed. There was no point in arguing with him on this. He gave the phone back to Zack..."You call her over. I'm sure she'd hang up the minute she'd hear my voice."

Zack took the phone understanding that Cody was right. He quickly scrolled down his contacts and dialled her number and waited as it rang.

Meanwhile Bailey Pickett was walking down the lane to get to the main road. Tears were flowing freely from her eyes and she didn't even bother clearing them up. In the crowd, there was nobody who'd notice her. And it wasn't like anyone cared either. Cody Martin had ruined her life. She was wrong to challenge him. Now she knew that she didn't stand a chance against him. He was rich and powerful, and he could do anything he wanted to. For Bailey, she barely remembered her name herself, why would anybody care about who she was? She was a nobody and would remain that.

On the verge of an emotional breakdown, Bailey stopped and leaned back against a wall. She took a deep breath and wiped away the remains of her tears off of her face. She was just about to start her walk again when she felt her phone ringing. She took it out and saw who it was, Zack. Why was he calling her now. She pressed answer...

"What do you want?" She asked harshly. On the other side of the phone, she heard a stammering voice of Zack Martin.

_"I...I just...you know, Bailey, I know you're going through a lot and I'm really sorry for that. I can...I mean, we can help you. If you just come over for a few minute_s? I'll tell you the details then..,"

Bailey listened carefully...it felt like he was on to something again..."I don't need your or your brother's help. Thank you very much..." She was about to hang up when she heard him speak again...

"_Bailey, please just hear us out once. We're in equal trouble. We both can solve eachother's problems. Just come over, Bailey. It won't hurt to just listen to what we've planned?"_

Bailey paused to think about it. She really didn't have anything left to lose. And if he was begging her like that, she got a feeling that it was them who were in more need of her presence over there than she was of them. She smiled to herself..."Alright! I'll be over in 10 minutes." She hung up the phone and smiled..."this is gonna be good."

Back at Martin Empire, both Zack and Cody were waiting for Bailey to arrive. Zack was calmly sitting in the same chair, whereas Cody was pacing back and forth. He was being too impatient. He was actually doing the count down. Zack thought he was being just crazy. But then again, it was not his life's hard work being taken away from him. Why would he get it?

"She's not coming. I knew she wouldn't come. She said 10 minutes and its..." Cody paused to check his watch..."12 minutes now. She's NOT coming, Zack." Cody panicked. Zack just rolled his eyes and got up. He grabbed Cody by his shoulder in order to get him to stop pacing around. He forced his attention towards him and spoke..."Dude, relax! She's just 2 minutes late. Besides, nobody go by the nano-seconds of the clock like you do."

As Zack was again pulling his brother's leg, the doors to Cody's office opened and Bailey entered the room once again. But this time, with less of an alarming situation.

"Sorry I'm a bit late..." She announced. Zack couldn't help but let out a little laugh again..."I see! You go by the nano-seconds of the clock too. Great. You two seem to be already computable..."

While Zack was joking, Cody observed the confused look on Bailey's face as the last words escaped Zack's mouth. Clearly Zack didn't understand the sensitivity of the whole situation..."Zack, instead of wasting time on your silly jokes, can you just tell her the plan?" Cody mumbled but Bailey heard and quickly spoke up..."Yeah, please! I don't have all day to be here and wait for your silliness..."

"Now you two are agreeing on the same things? Wow! Made for eachother..." Zack joked again.

"WHAT?" Bailey asked surprised. She wasn't quite recovered from Zack's first comment, and he passed a second, more shocking one. She turned towards Cody..."What is he saying? Made for eachother? Us? What in the world is going on here?"

Cody just held his head and ignored all of Bailey's questions. He had to deal with Zack and his silly jokes first..."Zack, she's gonna freak out if you won't refrain from passing such comments BEFORE telling her what our plan is."

"Oh alright!" Zack said giving in. He turned to Bailey and tried his best to put on a straight business face..."We have to offer you a deal, Miss Pickett. Please have a seat." He said gesturing towards a chair. She obliged and sat down. "Now, I know we've had our issues in the past but, the Martins are willing to settle them all down. And offer your sister her job back and for you to officially join the Martin Empires." Zack presented her the offer imitating his best professional voice.

"And why would you do that?" Bailey casually asked. She knew there was something that they wanted out of this..."because we're nice people." Zack exclaimed and waited for her to believe it but to no avail. She kept staring at him, giving him a look that said 'I know what you're upto'. While Cody was observing Bailey and Zack's conversation from the other side of the table, he only hoped that Zack wouldn't tell her how much they needed her. But it was Zack...

"Okay okay, I'll tell you..." Zack let out an audible sigh of defeat before he continued..."Mom has put our company, which Cody handles, on stake over a deal she made with him. Unless he dates a girl and introduce her to mom within one month, she'd take away everything from him."

"ZACK!" Cody shouted as he finished..."Why did you tell her all of this?" Zack was confused as to why Cody didn't want him to tell Bailey about his deal with mom. While Bailey had finally gotten everything. She grinned..."I see, so unless I agree to be your 'pretend' girlfriend for my and my sister's job, your precious empire will be taken away from you. Hm! Interesting." She said smiling...

Cody just shook his head..."Why did I ever agree to take your help, Zack. You never, and I mean NEVER tell the person you're doing business with about your weakness. Because if you do, they'll find a way to use it against you."

"Oohhhh!" Zack uttered as he realized what Cody meant..."Well, why didn't you just tell me that before?"

Cody just rolled her eyes. However Bailey had a lot of things running through her mind. She would have to say yes because she desperately needed a job. And she also felt really guilty about the fact that her sister lost her job. This could solve many problems. She had to do this. But now that she knew that Cody Martin was in bigger need, she wanted to use it in her favour. And also to have some fun with it. She grinned and got up from her chair...

"I'll do it..." She exclaimed and both Zack and Cody stood up with smiling faces to thank her but she held out a hand..."BUT." She paused..."I have a few conditions that you have to meet."

"Anything you want." Zack quickly agreed..."Very well." Bailey stated happily..."my first condition is that Cody would have to accept his mistake and apologise to me."

"What? No way! I would NEVER apologise to...HER!" Cody said refusing...Bailey quickly turned around and began to walk away..."Then good luck finding another girl..."

"No, Bailey wait." Zack stepped forward to stop her from going..."he's just joking. He will apologise. Just give me a second with him." Zack passed by her and went to where Cody was standing and whispered lightly in his ears..."You dumb-wit. You don't have much time. And I already explained to you all the pros of having her as your girlfriend. You need her. Don't ruin this, will you?" Cody just sighed...Zack was right, he did somehow need her...he turned his attention towards Bailey..."I was wrong." He tried to sound as sincere as possible..."I'm really sorry." The moment those words escaped, it brought a smile on Bailey's face. She beamed..."You're forgiven." She said amused by his little and to the point apology..."Now, the second thing I want is for Cody to ask me out. Just like any guy would ask a girl out."

"What? Are you crazy?" Cody said refusing her condition once again..."There's no way in hell I'll ever ask you out..."

"Fine!" Bailey muttered..."Then I hope you find the streets comfortable enough to sleep."

She was about to walk away when Zack stopped her again..."Wait!" Bailey turned around and saw Zack giving Cody a dead glare.

Cody sighed and stepped forward and made his way towards her. He looked in to her eyes and took a deep breath and mumbled..."lets get this over with..." He closed eyes and tried to imagine the one time he actually asked a girl out. If he was being honest with himself, he didn't remember a single thing. For what seemed like forever, he remained there still not saying a word. Then he opened his eyes and saw it, her eyes, her sparkling brown eyes. She was looking at him and he felt as if she was looking directly through his soul. Cody didn't know what possessed him but he instinctively grabbed her hands in his. The whole time his eyes remained on her. He unwantedly and unknowingly observed each expression that came and went on her face. She defined innocence. Cody couldn't help it, she somehow had this force that triggered something inside of him everytime he looked at her. He once again took a deep breath and gave her hands a light squeeze...

"Bailey. I...you know. I mean..." He stammered as if he was really asking a girl out. He felt the same nervousness..."The thing is, I really like you a lot. You somehow make things better. We've started out on a wrong foot but I'd like to give us a chance. Bailey, will you go out with me?" His voice was a pure reflection of honesty. Bailey was left speechless. It was either he was a really good actor or was he being actually honest? Her thoughts would have continued but they were disturbed by the doors opening...it was Cody's secretary, Martha. She wanted to say something but saw Cody holding a girl's hands, so she stopped and backed away..."I'm sorry, sir. I didn't know I was disturbing something..." With that she left. However her sudden arrival did bring Cody out of his daze. He quickly let go of her hands and stepped a little away from her. Just then Zack got over and leaned forward..."so your answer is?" He asked. Cody was glad Zack took over the situation and made it less awkward.

"Yes. I'll go out with you." Bailey said looking at Cody with same amount of sincerity in her eyes. Both Cody and Bailey would've lost in eachother's gaze again but Zack quickly spoke up.

"Perfect! Now all we have to do is practice for a few days, prepare a nice script to say in front of mom then take Bailey to her when we're ready. But first..." Zack turned to Cody..."Go call mom and tell her you've found a girl and that you'll bring her home in a few days..."

Cody nodded in agreement without even thinking. He took out his phone and called his mom. Both Bailey and Zack waited patiently as they heard only one side of the conversation...

"Yes, mom! Its the same girl..."

"No, mom...I don't hate her, in fact...I've always loved her. Thats the reason I was upset when she was with Zack..."

"Yes I knew her way before Zack met her as London."

"No, mom. She's not like that. She's the most amazing person I've ever met. It was just my anger talking..."

"I think so, yes! I'll bring her over in a few days."

"What? Why now, mom?"

"I can't! She's...uh...busy."

"But...can't you wait for a few days?"

"But? Mom? Hello?...MOM?"

Cody put down his phone and saw Zack and Bailey staring at him...

"She wants to see her right now..."

"WHAT" Zack and Bailey uttered simultaneously, as Cody explained...they all exchanged nervous glances.

"I'm screwed." Cody sighed.

_**To be Continued...**_

**A/N: I might not update next week, I have my mid-term coming up. I'll be busy as hell :( but, I'll still try my best to at least give you guys a short update. Stay tuned, folks!  
Love, Ash! xx**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: You guys just forced this chapter out of me :D in a positive way of course. Lol! I gave myself a half hour break from the horrifying subject that is "Statistical Inference". I was suppose to rest but decided to write instead. :) hope this gets appreciated. Not much effort put in to this though.  
And yes, I'm very much a girl :D**

_**"I Have My Own Scheme Up My Sleeve"**_

The cabin of Cody Martin was fallen in deep silence. As Zack sat on the couch trying hard to think, Cody was pacing around. While Bailey couldn't care less of the whole situation. She was firmly situated on one of the office chairs, toying with an apple that was in the fruit basket. It was like she was in a serious debate with herself on whether or not to eat it.

"What am I going to do?" Cody finally spoke up in a panic tone..."I have no idea what am I suppose to do? I have no past experience in acting..." He started to count it on his fingers..."dating, taking a girl home, telling mom I love her...or worse, doing it all with someone I immensely hate..."

"I hate you too..." Bailey called from the other side casually. Cody just looked at her. He just felt angrier on the fact that she was so relaxed. Zack stood up and came closer to where Cody was standing...

"Dude, relax! You're worrying for nothing. I know that we couldn't practice anything or write a proper script like I said, or rehearse the scene before we go do the actual one, we hardly even know the story which you're going to tell mom..." He paused to analyze it and then began laughing..."Yeap, you're screwed." Zack went back to his seat as he continued his giggles..."Good luck, bro. I'll miss ya..."

Cody glared at him..."You're suppose to make me feel better not worse. Nobody here understands how serious this is..." Just then his attention went back to Bailey who had an apple in her hands..."And you?" Cody said approaching her..."How could you eat at a time like this?"

Bailey just looked up at him. Her mouth was full with the giant bite she took out of the apple..."It wuv free..." She said casually with her mouth still full. Cody sighed. Not only was he in big trouble, but he almost assumed it was time to kiss his billions worth empire goodbye.

"It was not free..." Cody uttered between grinding his teeth..."I paid for it. And by the looks of it, it won't be long before I have to make each penny count. Might as well start now. So you better give me the money for that apple..."

Bailey was kind of getting tired of his drama. She stood up putting the apple back in the basket..."Okay now listen up, Mr. Grumpy pants..." She shot..."you won't have to do anything, get it?" She patted his back..."I'll handle it all. Now lets go." She passed by him and gestured Zack to get up and go. But before she could even reach the door, she was stopped by Cody's voice again.

"You'll handle everything? Really? You don't even know its ill-mannered to speak while you're eating. You cannot possibly pull this off..."

Bailey rolled her eyes..."and with an attitude like yours, you still pull off being a gentle man right?" She smirked..."if people can believe that, anybody would believe I'm your girlfriend."

"My mom is not anybody. She's not so easy to fool, trust me."

Bailey sighed. He was so impossible to deal with. She went closer to him and locked her arm in his. She turned around to face Zack and continued..."Hey, Mrs. Martin. It is so nice to finally meet you. Cody has told me a lot about you. I know your son, and the way he is, so well behaved...I already know what a lady you are yourself."

Bailey finished and turned to look at Cody. He just looked at her surprised. The amount of fluency she had in her sentences were really something to be appreciated. And sure enough Zack did...

"WOW! No wonder I fell for your London act right away. You are good..."

"Thanks..." Bailey smiled..."now do you trust me?" She asked Cody. He just nodded. He just didn't know what else to say. Besides, he didn't have any choice either..."Great! Then lets go. Its show time..." Bailey led Cody out of the room arm-in-arm with Zack following them closely behind.

As the car stopped right outside the Martin Mansion, the trio began to get nervous. Bailey who was so confident few moments ago was now getting a cold feet. She looked at Cody who was sitting beside her...

"I can't do this. Let me go. I don't want anything, no job, no money..." Bailey nervously tried to push Cody out but he grabbed her hands tightly and forced her to stop doing what she was..."Listen to me." Cody said and made her look at him..."we can do this. Right now, we both need each other. You do this thing for me and I promise I'll give you anything you want. Just help me, Bailey. Please!"

Bailey sighed. She couldn't back down now. She really needed to get her mind straight before making any commitment. But now that she already had, she had to honour it. She slightly nodded gesturing Cody that she was ready. They all got out of the car and headed inside to the drama that was awaiting them.

Carrey Martin was comfortably seated on one of her living room couches. She had a magazine in one hand and a mug of coffee in other. It wasn't long ago that she had received Cody's call about him finding a girl. It turned out she was the same girl because of whom this whole scene started. Cody was a smart young man, he obviously knew what he was doing. But what he didn't know was that his mother was smarter than him when it came down to knowing her sons. The minute Cody told her he was in love with the girl who pretended to be London, she knew something was up. Both Zack and Cody were trying to pull off something big with her to get her to sign the property off to Cody's name. But, she was their mother after all. It was not as easy as they thought it'd be.

She grinned as she took in the warm sip of her coffee. "You'll be thankful to me one day for what I'm about to do to you, Cody." She thought. She had everything planned out in her head. Now all she needed to do was see this girl and make sure she was the right one to do what she wanted to do.

As Carrey was putting final touches on her plan in her head, she heard the front door opening and saw Cody coming in with a beautiful young girl on his arm. Zack was right behind them. Carrey witnessed both Cody and the girl appeared to be nervous. Even though she had her doubts about Cody really being in love, she shook the thought away with an explanation that it was only natural to be nervous when meeting your boyfriend's mother and for the guy to be nervous when introducing the girl he loves to his mom.

Carrey put down her mug and magazine on the table in front of her, stood up and waited as they approached her. She closely looked at the girl who had her one arm in her son's and with her other hand she was rubbing Cody's arm as if she was trying to inject her nervousness into him through her hand. Carrey couldn't help but smile at her innocence. Not only was she beautiful, but somehow her face reflected purity and honesty. She was wearing capri shorts with a light, casual top. She had a shy smile on her face which only brought out her innocent beauty. For Carrey, she was the angel sent from the heavens. Right then, Carrey knew it was her. She was the one who could change her son. She was the one for him. Now it was time for Carrey to put her plan in action.

"Cody. Will you introduce her to me now?" Carrey smiled.

Cody cleared his throat before he spoke up..."Ye..s, mom." He stammered..."This is Bailey Pickett, my girlfriend. And Bailey, this is my mom, Carrey Martin."

Cody finished and forced a smile out. Bailey extended her arm to shake with hers. She took a deep breath. She had been practicing her lines all the way. She could do it..."Hey, Mrs. Martin. It is so nice to finally meet you. Cody has told me a lot about you. I know your son, and the way he is, so well behaved...I already know what a lady you are yourself." Bailey finished and a huge smile came to her face. She did it without any stammer or weird nerve attack. She mentally congratulated herself. She observed the woman standing in front of her and quickly got the message she was looking for. She looked pleased with her.

"Nice to meet you too, Bailey." Carrey smiled shaking her hand..."If you are willing to put up with my son, I'm sure you're a saint." Carrey laughed. In response to which, Bailey let out a laugh too. It was true that nobody could know a person better than his own mother. Bailey thought that the "snobby Mr Richie Rich's" mom really knew him. But right now, she felt she had to play the "good girlfriend" part and defend him.

"He's not so bad, Mrs Martin. Cody is in fact quite the gentle man. If only he had told me about how he felt from the start, nothing so dramatic would have happened. But he was too secretive about his feelings. Weren't you, honey?" She said looking at Cody with a cute smile. Cody was caught a bit off guard. He didn't know what she was doing but he had to play along..."Yes, I was..." He smiled..."I was just afraid that you didn't feel the same way and that you'd reject me..."

Bailey smiled..."Aww!" She put her free hand on his cheek and lightly caressed it. "I couldn't have, Cody. I love you." Bailey said looking in his eyes. She wanted it to sound like she meant it and to her surprise, she didn't have to put in much effort..."I love you too, Bailey." Cody replied with the same amount of reality reflecting in his tone and words. They both looked deep in each others eyes and they felt it again. The spark. It was like the world around them faded and they were the only ones there. Bailey could feel herself downing under the gaze of his deep sea blue eyes. While Cody felt like somebody has taken away his energy to even stand. He felt weak. He felt like surrounding his entire self to her.

"Ahem ahem..." They both jolted apart from their embrace with Carrey clearing her throat..."Right, I got you. Now we have a lot to catch up on so how about we all go sit down?"

They all nodded and followed Carrey to the couches she was previously sitting in. Carrey made Bailey sit beside her while Cody sat right by Bailey's side and Zack secured a separate couch in front of them and propped up his feet and laid back while they all chatted.

For Cody, it was all going according to plan. Not only was his mother believing everything but she also seemed to like Bailey and approved of her. Cody couldn't help but praise Bailey in his head. She had tackled everything so well that he didn't have to say or explain anything. She made up great stories and narrated them quite well too. Cody couldn't be more grateful to anyone. Despite what they went through together, Bailey was still helping him whole heartily. Now all there was left to be done was for Cody to ask his mom in a few days about signing the company to his name. Cody thought that once his mother would have a firm believe in his and Bailey's relationship, he'd bring that topic up and everything would be done and over with. He sighed off contentment. Finally things seemed to be working out for him.

However it seemed like Zack was thinking something else, or was it like he was not thinking at all? Just when everything was going completely fine, he sat up and went close to where rest of them were sitting. He tapped on his mother's back to get her attention and when she did turn around, he smiled...

"So...mom! I was thinking...now that our little Cody is in love and all the blabby stuff you wanted him to be in...how about you signing the Martin Empire to his name? He did his part of the deal and now its your turn..."

"ZACK!" Cody shouted to stop him from saying any further. How could he be such an idiot? Cody wanted to go punch him in the neck for bringing that up the very day and the very hour that he introduced his girlfriend to mom. What Cody didn't know was that his mother was one step ahead of him. She would've brought it up anyway...

"Why are you getting angry, Cody? Its not like Bailey doesn't know anything?" She smiled...

"No its not that. I don't hide anything from her..." He sighed..."its just that I thought if I'd ask about the company today, you might get the feeling that I did all of this for the empire and not because I was serious..."

"Oh I know you're serious." Carrey stated. Cody just looked at her surprised. "I'll transfer the company to your name when I'll believe you're really in love. Just like I said in our deal..."

"And?" Cody asked..."do you believe I'm in love right now?"

"No!" Carrey uttered almost instantly...

"Well thats hurtful. I've never brought any girl home before, mom. Doesn't that tell you all you need to know?" Suddenly things seemed to have taken a U-turn. Moments ago, he thought his mom was believing everything...

"Thats only because you never even talked to any girl before, let alone date her OR bring her home." Carrey smirked...

Cody just sighed. Finally his real mom was out..."Then what will make you believe me?"

"The only proof there is to true love." She explained and Cody looked at her questioning what she meant so she continued..."Marriage. When two people are really in love, they close the deal by getting married. If you marry Bailey and would be willing to spend your life with her, I'd believe you're really in love. And I'd give you the company as well."

"WHAT?" Cody stood up shocked..."But, mom thats not fair. The deal was to date not to marry."

"The deal was for you to make me believe you're in love and that you've changed." Carrey shouted in the same voice to match his..."My word is still final, if you love her? Tie the knot. Put a ring on her finger and settle down. You're over 25, well established and rich. I don't see any reason why you can't marry her if you love her. Unless you don't and you only faked it to get the company. Because I swear if thats the case, you won't get a penny out of this empire."

"Mom, please!" Cody stopped her..."its not that i don't love her, I really do. Bur marriage? Mom, don't you think its a decision for us to make? And for you to not blackmail me into it?"

"Of course, sweetie. Its your decision to make and I'm not going to pressure you." Carrey assured..."you have all the time in the world. But, my word is final. I am not going to sign the company to your name until I believe you really are in love and you've changed. And if you marry her, I'd believe you only then. Thats all I'll say."

"But, mom listen..." Cody tried to get a word in but he was cut off..."No more discussion..." She turned to Bailey and smiled..."Once again, it was nice meeting you. GoodBye..." With that she walked past by them...

"MOM!" Cody shouted from behind but she didn't bother turning around. Cody defeated by his mother's schemes, gave up. He turned around and saw both Zack and Bailey looking at him in horror.

Suddenly Zack started laughing..."Well, it went better than we thought. Not only does she like Bailey but she also approved of her as your wife."

Cody just glared at him. It was like he was stuck in a dead end.

**To be continued...**

**A/N: Yay! I updated. Lol! And you know, guys? I'm finally at the point in story where I wanted it to be. A lot of more drama coming up. Stay tuned. And keep reading & REVIEWING. :D  
I love you guys like so much xD  
Love, Ash! xx**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I know, I suck at updating quicker than a week. Can't help much you guys. The only free time I get on my hands is on the weekends. Spare me please? You guys rock! Really. Thank you for all the reviews.  
P.S I know you probably don't wanna know, but hey? I will babble about it anyway :D I LOVE TVD! :D I started watching it just now, through with a season and a half in 2 days :p obsessed :) I might do a fanfic :)  
Anyways, on to the story. Enjoy!**

_**"Lets Get Fake Married?"**_

Zack, Cody and Bailey were all seated in Cody's car, they were on their way back to the office to discuss about the newly developed problem. The drive back was filled with silence. Each of them were thinking as per their capacity to get out the situation. As they reached Cody's office, they all consumed their separate seats and fell back. Zack laid back on the couch, Bailey sat down on the chair in front of the table while Cody took her on seat on his boss chair. The room still echoed silence.

"You know what? We're worrying for nothing. You can just fake marry her..." Zack was the first one to speak up. And for Cody, it really didn't give him much. As usual, his idea was stupid...

"Zack, there's no such thing as 'fake' marriage. You either get married or you don't. There's nothing in between, okay?" Cody explained. Zack just rolled his eyes, his brother didn't know anything. He could get him out of it in no time if he'd just listen...

"Well, I for one don't have to be here..." Before Zack could even open his mouth to speak, Bailey began to stand up..."I made a deal to date you, not marry you. So technically, I'm no more bound with commitment..." She smiled off half relief and half teasingly..."Good luck to you guys." She remarked as she took her steps towards the door to leave...

"BAILEY WAIT!" It was Zack who shouted and he was by her side in an instant. Bailey tried to hold in her grin. She didn't know why, but she enjoyed making them beg...

"Oh don't stop her, Zack." Cody shot before Zack could even try to convince Bailey to stay. Cody was now on the other side of Bailey. He stared at her..."Who needs you anyway?" Cody's one liner left Bailey wanting to make it more difficult for the Richie Rich. She took a step closer to him and was about to say something when Zack shouted again..."YOU do. Idiot."

Zack held his head and moved away from the couple as he paced back and forth..."You already told mom you love her. You can't just take another girl and tell her that you somehow magically decided to marry someone else and not the girl you love." Out of all three of them, Zack was the only one who was talking rationally at that time. Cody was just in denial of the fact that he really did need Bailey and his pride was not letting him ask or plead for help. On the other hand, Bailey was wanting the exact thing, she wanted Cody to literally beg.

"Forget it, Zack..." Bailey exclaimed..."Mr. Richie Rich here is too much in his own to accept that he needs me. Besides, I would not marry him even if he was the last man of the planet..." She shot.

"Oh yeah?" Cody got angrier than he already was. Bailey's remark had clearly made his decision of not taking any help from her more concrete..."As if I'm dying to marry you right?" He said sarcastically..."Marry? You? Please...I'd rather marry a donkey. At least he'd be better looking..." Cody insulted and on that Bailey's jaw dropped. If Cody was now more firm on his idea of not taking her help, she was firmer to not help him.

"AND I'D RATHER DIE!" She shouted angrily..."Because dying by any mean would be a lot less painful than to be called YOUR wife."

"Oh I'll show pain..." Cody stepped closer to her in a way that showed she was about to hit her or something. But Bailey didn't budge, she stared directly in his eyes..."You take back what you said right now..." Cody tried to threaten her but to no avail. She was far from scared...

"Or what? You'll hit me?" Bailey questioned confidently. A sarcastic smile spread on her face, "You look like you can't even lift a weight. And expect me to be scared of you? Oh please..." She laughed...

As the duo argued back and forth, Zack just couldn't help but feel that his previous judgement about them was wrong. He thought that they had something between them. But witnessing them like that left him with a conclusion that they both hated each other to the core. They couldn't even talk for 2 minutes without exchanging insults, how would they ever agree on his idea? Zack thought it was impossible for them to be in the same room and not argue. But he just had to convince them. It was for their own sake. They both needed each other. Cody needed his Company, while Bailey needed money. Zack sighed. He looked back at them and they were still staring them right in the eye with pure anger. They were inches away from tackling the other on the floor. Zack put a hand on both of their shoulder and tore them apart...

"Believe me, guys...I'm throughly enjoying this. Its like watching Riesling, except its more dramatic and the punches are your comeback lines..."Zack sarcastically stated..."But, I'd have to break your beautiful fight. We have bigger issues here people..."

"I don't have any issue, I am out of here..." Bailey again stepped to leave but Zack grabbed her by the shoulder and stopped her...

"Bailey, please. Just listen to me once. You'll actually like my idea. And you can agree to it on your terms. Please Bailey?" Zack looked for her response and she sighed and nodded. He exhaled off relief and continued..."Now, I know you guys can't even stand eachother but we have to do this. You guys have to get married..."

Zack plainly stated and he was answered by their stares. He grinned..."Its not going to be a real marriage. Its only going to be a contact marriage."

They both looked at him again confused and clueless. He gestured them both to sit down and they did. Cody was in the middle and Zack and Bailey sat on either sides of him. As they all got comfortable, he began..."I was with London the other day and I learned about a contractual marriage for the first time. Mr Tipton once did that for some business purposes. Its not fake, its very much a real traditional wedding but with a contract attached to it..." Zack paused to observe them if they were catching up to him, they still looked as surprised as before. He obviously needed to do more explaining..."The couple gets married in the church or anywhere for that matter. They exchange vows and everything is real. But with the marriage certificate, a legal contract is attached. Which could last a particular time as per your wish. After the contact expires, the marriage does too..." Zack finished.

"So what you're saying is, we get married like its real but secretly have a contract involved in it?" Cody asked. He was not sure where this would lead, but somehow he liked the idea.

"Exactly." Zack grinned..."Mom would never suspect anything. The wedding will be as real as one can be. But I'll get London's lawyer to device up a contract. It will last a particular time, which could be..,"

"A month..." Cody immediately spoke up...

"A week." It was now Bailey to add in the idea...

"A day would be best." Cody smirked at Bailey.

Zack just held his head and sighed. Those two were clearly very hard to deal with..."How about an hour guys?" Zack shot babk at them...

"PERFECT!" They both uttered simultaneously. Zack just looked at them, did they really hate each other that much? "Look guys..." Zack continued..."I know this could be hard for you both, but trust me, it'll do us all some good. And for your convenience, I'll make it two months. I mean, it could be one month but that is a little too soon and mom might suspect something is up right?"

They both looked at Zack and then at each other. They had to agree on this, it was not like they had a choice. They nodded in agreement and Zack exhaled off relief...

"Oh thank goodness. So, I'll just give a call to the lawyer and get the necessary details. Then we'll arrange a meeting and get the contract finalised. Are we all on the same page?"

Cody and Bailey nodded again. They both felt it'd be best if they won't say much. Every time either of them said anything, they ended up in another argument. They both waited as Zack busied himself on the phone. All they could hear was Zack's "ahans". After a few minutes, the conversation was over and Zack made his way towards the couch they were sitting on.

"I have a good new and a bad new." He stated...

"What's the bad news?" Cody asked. As if he already had not enough of them.

"The bad news is that the minimum time for a contractual marriage has to be one year at least."

"WHAT?" They both shouted. Bailey stood up unbelievingly..."There is no way in hell I'm spending a year with...with HIM."

"Oh really?" Cody stood up too and looked her in the eye..."You think this would be any better for me? Please Bailey, we both hate each other, all of us know that. But do we have a choice?"

"Yes. I do." Bailey stared back..."its you who doesn't have a choice, sir." She gave him an evil eye which said blackmail in capitals...

"Are you threatening me that you would leave?" Cody asked and a huge grin formed his face..."I think we have learned beforehand what I'm capable of doing. I've been playing nice but this really is getting out of my control. Things that you thought I did, I could do that and more in split seconds. So you better play along with all of this..."

Even though his threat was way scarier than hers, she was not about to show that it had gotten to her..."Not with that attitude I won't." She turned around to leave but she was stopped by a hand grabbing her arm. She assumed it would be Zack stopping her once again but when she turned around it was Cody.

"I am sorry..." He said sincerely..."I didn't mean to threaten you or anything. Look I need you, Bailey. I know its hard but just do this. Please?"

Bailey didn't know why but it felt like she was compelled to say yes. She slightly nodded and smiled. Cody sighed in relief and turned back to Zack. He clearly was not amused by their constant arguments..."What's the good news? Tell me that first so we could figure out what could be done about the other part."

"Right!" Zack tried to shake off the feeling of annoyance he had developed during their bickering..."The good new is that the only way to break the marriage before one year is that if the couple starts having way too many issues, and it becomes hard for other people to handle them. Only in that case, they could get divorced before the year ends."

Both Cody and Bailey looked at him confused. Zack grinned..."All you have to do to get out of your contractual marriage is fight endlessly." He paused and smiled..."Just like now."

Cody and Bailey looked at each other and smiled despite of themselves. Maybe it would be not so bad after all.

Meanwhile back at the Pickett's residence, Eunice Pickett was pacing around. She had a phone in her hand and she was constantly trying to dial a number. Her husband, Clyde Pickett was seated firmly on the couch watching TV.

"Clyde, her phone is still off." She came closer to him and stated. He didn't respond. His attention was completely fixed on the TV screen.

"She left in such a hurry. She was both angry and depressed on that Cody boy. Clyde, I'm really worried. Where could she be?" She said again to get his attention but still he didn't budge. It was now getting on Eunice's nerve.

"What is so important on the TV that you can not even respond to me?" She irritatedly asked and made her way to the couch and sat next to him. When he still didn't respond, Eunice turned her own attention to the TV screen and the moment she spotted the underlined news, her face turned pale. She froze in her tracks and it became hard for her to breath. She turned towards Clyde and he had the same look.

"I know..." Clyde finally spoke. But it seemed like that was all that he could say. She turned her attention to the TV again to make sure she was not having a nightmare. But it was true. It really was. The under line read...

_"Natalia's strikes again. has she retuned to town?"_

**To be continued...**

**A/N: I'm open to ideas. PM me. (:**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: First off, I want to apologize for the long wait. I was caught up in a family issue and it occupied every bit of my time and energy. All I can say is, I need good wishes. :/  
Secondly, I am beyond thrilled to reach a 100 mark in reviews. When I started this story, I had no idea that it'd be loved so much. :) Thank you for your support. And my apologies for the delay. And yes, I'm not going to give up on this story. I enjoy writing this a lot. :) Thank you again to each one of you lovely people. I LOVE YOU ALL! :)**

**_"Mystery Of The Mystery Girl"_**

It was late at the night hour. The clock was reaching to midnight. For Clyde and Eunice Pickett, each minute felt like an hour. Bailey was still not home.

"I'm telling you, Clyde. Something is really wrong..." Eunice continued pacing. She was frightened, she was terrified of one thing happening that she'd give anything to make it stop..."What if? No no, this can't be it." She started to panic..."Natalia can't get to her. Not this time, Clyde."

Even though Clyde was thinking along the same lines and was equally worried, he was just better at hiding. And for Eunice, he had to be strong. He took a deep breath and moved forward to get a hold of her. He was half way to her when they both heard the door opening. Through it appeared a tired Bailey. She barely had the energy to announce her arrival. She just merely waved at her parents and began to head to her room. But it seemed like that her day wasn't quite over.

"Wait, Bailey." Her mother stopped her. She turned around clearly annoyed. She had a long day and was not particularly in a mood to explain anything. She knew that she would have to tell her parents about her plan of getting married to Cody Martin, she also knew that she could not possibly tell them that it would be a contract marriage because she feared that they would not let her do it. But right then, all she wanted to do was sleep.

"Momma, whatever it is, can we please do it in the morning? I'm really tired." She nearly begged. But Eunice was too paranoid to let go of the issue right then...

"No we can't..." She denied her request. She walked closer to where Bailey was standing..."I want to know where were you? Why didn't you feel the need to tell us you'll be late? Don't you know I get worried?"

Bailey just sighed. Yes she knew her mother always got way too worried, she just didn't know why..."I know, momma!" She continued..."I am sorry. My phone's battery died that is why I couldn't contact. I was with the Martins. And please let me go to bed now? I'll tell you everything in the morning. Okay?" She asked again, hoping her mother would agree this time. But to no avail, she was stopped yet again...

"Bailey, no! I need to know what happened today? Where exactly were you? Do you remember being anywhere near the building that had a fire incident this afternoon?" Eunice asked but she was afraid to listen to her answer...

And that was the problem...Bailey did remember that she passed by that building right after she left the Martins with her warnings. She remembered being upset, severely hurt and felt like she had lost everything. She also remembered that she suffered a terrible headache, but she just didn't remember anything afterwards. She was suddenly on a road miles away from that building and it wasn't until later that day that she learned about the fire incident. She didn't understand that if she was there like she remembered, why didn't she know about the fire? Why was there an emptiness in her head?

This was Bailey Pickett's whole life. At times she would feel that there were loops in her head. Like some puzzle pieces were missing. She would find herself at a place where she didn't remember going to. She would wake up in cold sweat at nights and would not know if she had a nightmare or she lived through something terrible. The most alarming part to all of this was that it seemed like her mother knew a lot. Bailey felt like she knew why she always missed out on things. At times she would get so mad that her mother would not tell her anything. Just like she got then...

"You know what, mom? I do! I remember being there. I know I was there but I don't remember how I got out of that place. And I certainly don't remember the fire. Why are you asking me this?"

Bailey tried to stay calm as she made her mother tell her how she knew it. It was always like that, everytime Bailey felt these loop wholes inside her head, her mom seemed to ask such questions. She knew that there was something that her mother had kept from her.

However for Eunice Pickett, an answer from her daughter had left her in shivers. She was afraid of that one thing and it had happened. The news was not false, it was true. Natalia really had returned. Learning that didn't leave much energy in her to continue anything with her daughter. All she wanted was to lay down. She had hoped, begged and pleaded to God. But it was now all over. Bailey would have to face Natalia again.

"Mom?" Bailey clearly noticing the constant change of emotions on her mother's face was now getting worried..."Is something wrong? Please tell me, mom"

Eunice forced herself to talk..."Nothing, sweetie. I just got worried when I watched the news of fire and then you were not answering your phone. You know how I am don't you, honey?" A painful smile emerged on her face. Bailey was fast to catch up on her lie. She was not ready to buy it...

"Tell me what really is the matter? Why are you so shaky? Momma please?" She reasoned with her. Eunice lightly tapped on her back and smiled. She tried to assure her that there was nothing else. Her mother constant denial left Bailey in anger. She couldn't hold it in anymore...

"You know what, mom? Forget it! Just forget it. Do you even have any idea what I go through? Its like I'm missing some pieces of my life's puzzle. I get these weird nightmares of me doing things that I could never do. Sometimes I feel like I have missed time. It had all stopped and I was so glad it did but today, I felt the same. You know what hurts the most? Its that you know something and you won't tell me. Obviously you don't care. Good Night, momma!" Bailey held in her tears and stormed off. She was tired of this. She didn't have any answer to all of this. She didn't know why she felt like that at times. All she knew was that the only people she thought could help her would not tell her anything. For Bailey, after a long day it was going to be a long night. Not to mention that she still had to tell her parents about getting married to Cody Martin.

Right outside her room, Eunice had buried herself in her husband's chest. She was sobbing uncomfortably while he stroked her back gently.

"Shhh! Its all going to be okay, honey." He whispered trying to assure her. She lifted her head up and looked at him...

"Our baby girl, Clyde. She's sick. Our poor baby." She wiped a tear from the corner of her eyes..."She wants to know the truth. How can we tell her? Would she be able to handle it? What will happen when she'll find out that she...she is...NATALIA..." Between stammers she finished. And in response, Clyde could only shake his head.

The next morning, the door to Cody Martin's room flung open way before than his own alarm was supposed to go off. Being the light sleeper that he was, his eyes shot open and he immediately sat up to make up the figure that was approaching him. The darkness was making it harder. He couldn't tell it was none other than Zack until he reached right beside him and slapped him in the back of his head. He winced and wined before he got up and turned on the lights...

"Are you out of your mind, Zack? Its not even 6 am yet. Why are you here?"

Cody was clearly angry but just like every time, his anger only made Zack chuckle. And on that he was shot by a dead glare from Cody. He tried to put on a serious face...

"Sorry, buddy. But you have to get up and get dressed. We are seeing the lawyer at 7 sharp." Zack explained and was about to head out when Cody stopped him.

"Wait. Why the hell so early?"

"Because after 8 I won't be able to catch you till...I don't know, midnight maybe? You have all these stupid, sappy, boring meetings..."

Cody couldn't help but laugh. For the first time in life his brother was helping him deal with something related to their company. But then again it was like one of his pranks. Obviously he had to play the best part in the whole plan.

"Okay." Cody smiled..."I'll be ready in a few. Lets get over with the final details to contract, so that we can also plan on how exactly to tell mom." Cody suggested...

"And so that you can also go buy a ring..." Zack reminded him and he was stopped in his tracks. He gave Zack a look that clearly asked him if he was crazy...

"A ring? Why?" He paused..."Oh no! No. Don't even think about it. There is no way I'm buying that Bailey Pumpkin a ring..."

"And thats why I call you a dimwit..." Zack shot at him..."Its not like you have a choice. You have to do it if you want mom to believe you."

Cody had to agree of course. They had already decided that they'd do everything in a proper way so that Carrey would buy it. Soon enough, both Cody and Zack found themselves sitting with the lawyer. They presented their terms and he guided them about the legal and lawful justifications to what they wanted. He also gave them a clear idea about how to end the contract before one year time period. They both asked him to keep the contract confidential and he agreed. When everything was settled, he told them that he'd devise it fully with all the clauses and would hand it over to them to sign by the end of the week.

For Cody, the moment he stepped outside the lawyers office, breathing became easier. He was getting suffocated by hearing him talk about marriage and living with Bailey for a whole year. But his misery was not over. He was literally pushed into a jewellery store by Zack. Even though he was not interested at all, he looked through every ring very carefully. He didn't know why but he wanted to select the perfect one...

"Are you sure you don't love her or anything? Because the way you're wanting a perfect ring for her says a different story." Zack gave his brother an eye. Cody slightly blushed but tried to cover it. He turned around still well focused on the ring he currently had in his hand...

"Well...I am a perfectionist and you know that. Even when I have to select a ring for my fake engagement with my fake girlfriend..."

It almost felt like forever to Zack in the jewellery store. After picking up the right ring for her, they were off to Cody's office...

"Here we are, brother..." Zack announced as they both entered in Cody's room..."Done with the contract, got the ring. Now all that is left to be done is tell mom and get the preparations ready for your big day, buddy."

"Easy there, Zack..." Cody held out a hand. The thought of wedding was frightening him..."Don't talk about that right now. I never even thought I'd ever date and now suddenly I'm getting married?" He started pacing..."Oh no. I don't think I can do this..."

Zack took a hold of him and calmed him down. When he got his attention, he slapped him and left Cody's mouth wide open in shock..."Would you stop being a sissy?"

"You could've said that without a slap?"

"I could have but it wouldn't have been this fun." Zack joked and Cody just shook his head. At that point, all Cody needed was some fresh air so he got out of his room to get just that. He made his rounds and was back in no time. When he entered the room he found his brother watching TV. The same news was on that Cody had read in the newspaper that morning...

_"Return of Natalia has brought many questions to us..."_

Cody heard the anchor say..."Who is this Natalia anyway? She's all over the news..." Cody came forward and asked Zack who had casually propped his feet up the desk...

"Oh she is the mystery girl. Someone who likes to serve justice at any cost. Even if it means breaking all the laws..." Zack explained and left Cody puzzled. Zack guessed that right away through his expressions and continued...

"Natalia, as she likes to call herself. Nobody knows if that is her real name. She is a die-heart protector of innocent. She goes to places where she is called and helps those in need. People contact her through an email. She access that through private servers so that nobody can catch her. The most interesting part about her is that nobody has seen her. Not even those who had contacted her for help. However when she solves a 'case', she likes to tell the world that it was her by leaving her signature "Natalia" at the place of incident. The only thing that police knows about her is that when she visits someone, she wears a knee length over coat and ankle high black boots. Her face is either covered with her own hair or a mask..."

"Wait..." Cody stopped him..."How come the police has never used her email as a trap? I mean, a fake email to call her for help and bam, she's arrested..."

"Yeah...its not so easy..." Zack started again..."I'm not sure if she's super natural or anything, but I do know that she is super smart. Police has used that method a couple of times. Failed. She never showed up. Somehow she gets to know if somebody is faking being in need or they really are. She is a load full of mystery, brother."

After hearing the story Cody's mind was actually blown. Being occupied by business and the news only related to that, he had missed out on such a thing? Through all the things that Zack told him about her, he felt that he had met this girl somewhere. He kept thinking hard until it suddenly hit him. Knee length over coat? Ankle high black boots? Face covered with hair? Cody gasped...it was her. Natalia was the girl who made him hate every girl on the planet. She was the girl who with such cruelty walked away from helping his father. She was the one, the reason he got the way he was now.

He started to feel sweat in his palms. For years he didn't know who that girl was and now that she did, he was determined to make her pay. He wanted her to suffer, just like her "no" made him suffer.

"I...Zack, I'll be right back..." He told Zack and stood up and went out of his cabin. He took the seat right outside his room and laid back. He sighed...what was he supposed to do now? The girl he always blamed for his father's death, was out there somewhere, causing havoc for everyone. He had to do something.

"Hey, Cody. What are you doing out here?"

Cody looked up and saw Bailey standing there. Right, he almost forgot that she was suppose to come. He forced a smile and looked at her...

"Nothing." He said..."Look, why don't you go inside and I'll be right over. Zack will brief you about the contract details till then..."

"Okay..." Bailey started to walk but then stopped right at the door. She turned around and walked back towards Cody. He didn't look so good. Something was wrong and she couldn't leave him like that...

"Are you alright, Cody?" She asked sympathetically. Cody again looked at her. He wasn't alright but why did it matter to her? "I'm fine. I just need some time alone. Okay?"

"Okay!" Bailey said and then she sat down on the chair next to him. Cody turned to face her and looked at her questioningly. He thought she agreed to leave him alone then why was she sitting down. Bailey caught up on that and smiled...

"You can stop me from talking to you but you can't stop me from being somewhere. Free country." She smiled again..."And I'm not leaving until I know you're alright."

A small smile spread across Cody's face. He never had anyone who was a complete stranger think so much about him. That was actually sweet of her. No matter the amount of their differences, she really was a nice person. Lost in his own thoughts, Cody didn't realize that he was looking directly at her...

"What?" She asked still smiling. Cody slightly looked away but still kept an eye contact..."I was just thinking that you're different. You're so not like her..." He said without even thinking...

"Her who?" Bailey was confused..."ex?" She asked...

"Oh no! Not ex. Its a long story but there was a girl who had the chance to help me once and my whole life was kind of dependant upon her help. But she refused...she...walked away. That was cruel. I had lost so much after that. I lost myself..." Cody could feel some fresh tears in her eyes. Yes she didn't know why, but she felt bad, Bailey felt bad for her "fake boyfriend". She wished she could do something. But it wasn't like she could, she didn't even know the whole story...

"I'm sorry for whatever happened." She said sincerely..."I just want you to know that you can talk to me if you want to." She assured her and Cody smiled..."Maybe some other time..." He paused and laughed..."And we'll have plenty of that since we are going to be married for a whole year..."

Bailey broke into a giggle. Yes, they would be married for a year. Maybe it would not be so bad after all. They both thought as they entered back in Cody's office.

**To be continued...**

A/N: I know I know, you guys must have several question...how come Bailey is Natalia? And she is not even aware of it? Huhhhh :o lol.  
Wait for the next chapter and all your questions will get answered. Also, the girl Cody hates so much for causing his father's death is actually Natalia? :o drama drama drama! Haha!  
Stay tuned, folks! :)  
Love, Ash! xx


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